Dead or Alive: Future meets past
by kunoichi cherry
Summary: It's been several years since the demise of Doatec and many of the former fighters have settled down and raised families. But what happens when Doatec rises from the ashes to threaten the world again? Doa generation 2 to the rescue! Please continue to R
1. Chapter 1

Disclamer: I do not own Doa, Ninja Gaiden, nor any of the characters related to those two awesome games.

The list was brought to Kokoro for examination. She knew she wasn't going to like it but her captors were not going to take no for an answer. It was merely for their amusement to cause her pain. She quickly realized that her son's name was included on this blacklist. The other names…they must be the children of the other competitors. Kokoro blinked back the tears. Doatec was back with a very large score it felt needed settling. It took several years for them to rebuild from the ashes she and all the others had left it in, giving them time to learn from past mistakes. And make vast improvements. Kokoro was never told who led Doatec's re-awakening but whoever it had been chose her to lead it. Why me? She wondered quietly, all I had wanted to do was test my skills in _Ba ji Quan ._All those years ago,the woman never dreamt of things becoming as brutal as they had. She nearly died. Many of her friends from the tournament nearly died. So much blood was shed to end the gruesome war. Those poor souls… they had no idea of the horrors that was about to be re-unleashed.

"So, whatcha think of the list?" A gruff voice interrupted. Kokoro nearly choked on her words.

"Do you know of their locations?"

"Been known."

She looked at the list again, her tear drops smudging the ink:

**Kaida**

Fighting style: Mugen Tenshin clan style ninitsju?

Nationality: Japanese

Gender: Female

Birthday: ??

Age: 17

**Toshi**

Fighting style: Hayabusa clan style ninitsju?

Nationality: Japanese

Gender: Male

Birthday:??

Age: 16

**Kentaro**

…

The paper slipped out of her hands and onto the cement floor. The guard picked it up.

"Well, I guess she approves."

_Yea, this was just a teaser to get people interested in the story. I'll reveal more names on the list in future chapters, and I'll be posting chapter one soon. Please review, much appreciated! Oh-yea, things will get a little funnier when Doa generation 2 begin narrating …_


	2. Chapter 2: Kaida's family

_A few weeks later…_

"No way!" Jillian exclaimed, shocked at my revelation.

"No, I'm dead serious."

"Tonight, I want to see with my own two eyes! And if you're telling the serious truth, you will go down as the coolest gal in the world… or at least in my world!" She winked before running off to the science lab.

I smiled because I knew I'd prove myself right. All I had to do was get my parents in on the action. I really hoped they would, it'd be so awesome of them…

"What was that all about?" a male voice addressed to me as I turned the corner to get to history class.

"None of your business," I replied tartly, not in the mood. He cocked his head and looked at me with those gorgeous misty grey eyes. I attempted to ignore him and make my way into the classroom. He blocked me.

"Kentaro, move!"

"Tell me the big secret then."

I hated it when he did this; Jillian claimed it was because he really liked me. I wanted nothing to do with him. Even if he is super hot…

"No, it's a girl thing and its just between me and Jillian. Now, move!"

"It's so cute how your face blends with your hair when you're angry." He said calmly, bringing his hand towards my cheek. I froze up as he relocated several red strands of hair to behind my right ear. The bell rang and I finally regained control of my body. I slapped his hand away while shouting "Great! Now I'm late because of you!"

"You know Kaida," he whispered sweetly, "I probably know more about you then you do." I just stared at him blankly. Was that some sort of lame pick-up line?

"Whatever." I muttered, pushing past him to get into class. Luckily the teacher had been out of the room making copies of that day's pop quiz.

"No." was my father's simple response.

"Please papa?" I pleaded, "You've known Jillian just as long as I have. She promises to keep this a secret and she's my best friend and-"

"I already told you my answer. Nothing will change it." And with that, he re-opened his book to continue reading it. I was not done yet, still having one more trick up my sleeve.

"Mom!!" I yelled. My father raised his eyebrow.

"It's not going to work…" he warned. I knew it would. It _always _did. Dad never said no to mom and if she agreed to this, he would have no choice but to accept as well.

"What's wrong?" She asked coming out of the kitchen.

"Papa won't show me some of his old ninja moves" I whined.

"Tell her the rest of your proposal." he said, still reading.

"Jillian wants to see them too…" I added quietly. Mom's eyes widened.

"You told her your father's a ninja!?"

I feared I was about to get scolded.

"I may have implied it b-but me and her have been such close friends and we've all known her for like ever and please, please, please could you show her your moves?"

Mom frowned, unsure of what to do or say. "Well…" she finally started, "If its just Jillian you told…"

Dad knew exactly where this was going.

"Kasumi…" he said slowly but sternly. It was one of the few times I ever heard my father call my mother by her first name. Suddenly, I wasn't sure if even my mom could convince him at all.

"It's only Jillian, right dear?" Mom asked me again. I nodded.

"I'm not getting involved" dad said stubbornly. Mom walked over to him and put a soft hand on his shoulder. Dad shook his head, expression unchanging. She whispered something in his ear and his face softened.

_What's going on?_ I wondered to myself. Was mom really going to get Dad to give in? He seemed so dead set against it. She continued talking to him quietly and what seemed to be a good five minutes, Dad did the sigh. Oh, how I loved the sigh! It meant mom finally won.

"THANK YOU SO MUCH!!" I yelled at the top of my lungs. I hugged mom super tight and bowed respectfully at my father. Then I hugged him super tight as well. He seemed to like it when I incorporated some Japanese culture into my American lifestyle.

"Only two minutes" he said after I released him from the hug.

"Ok, that's fair" I replied happily. I skipped upstairs towards my room whilst hearing my father say to mom "Must you _always_ agree with her?"

I stopped skipping at the top of the stairs when coming face to face with my younger brother Toshi.

"Are ma and papa really gonna fight ninja style?" he inquired excitedly.

"Yep" was my proud reply. His eyes widened. My brother was obsessed with all things ninja and once he found out our parents were ninjas (a dangerously placed skateboard on the stairs revealed Dad's ninja abilities and a cake explosion revealed Mom's…), he'd beg them everyday to show him some moves. After awhile, Dad decided to teach him some basic Ninjustu under the solemn oath that he would never use it against anyone. So far, Toshi has kept his word but he's definitely on the mischievous side…

"COOL! I'll get to see Ma in action!"

"I know!!"

_Later that night…_

"This is so exciting" Jillian said as we entered the training room. This is the room where my dad spends the majority of his 'at home' time. It was rather large with a dull yellow colored tiled floor and the walls were lined with mirrors. Only the wall on the opposite side of the room to the entrance was mirror-less and it showcased a beautiful sword. My father once told me it was called the Dragon sword. I asked him if he ever used it against someone and he told me no with a smile on his face. Said it was simply passed down to him by his father. He waited patiently as we all sat down where we believed we could get the best view. Jillian stared at my father, who was sporting a lightly form-fitting sleeveless green T and beige cargo pants.

"He's sooooo muscular…" she sighed dreamily, "totally unlike my blob of a dad."

I knew my father heard her because a slight smile crossed his face. Jillian looked around the dojo.

"Kind of reminds me of the gym I go to learn karate."

"The one in Germany?" I asked. She nodded; her mother was from Germany and made sure that every year they went to visit. Her mother was really close friends with a woman named Hitomi who owned a Karate dojo, thus inspiring Jillian to take up the art. She told me once she got her black belt, she'd challenge me to a duel. At that time, Jillian didn't know I had martial art skills of my own and I humored her.

"Karate?" Toshi repeated, staring hard at Jillian, "Ha! What a weakling martial art. Ninja style Ninjustu is way better!"

"Bite your tongue!!" Jillian yelled angrily, "Karate is just as awesome. You should see my teacher Hitomi in action…I bet she could defeat any Ninja style Ninjustu, uh, user"

When Jillian said 'Hitomi', my father's eyes lit up for a second as if he knew the name.

"Nah-uh!!"

"That's enough," my father interrupted," Toshi, no martial art is weak. When used by one that is truly skilled, no matter the type, it can be deadly." Then he slightly chuckled, "And there is no such thing as ninja style Ninjustu."

"There should be, its such a cool name…" Toshi went on, and then under his breath, "Karate is still lame…"

I nudged him in the gut, hard.

"Everybody ready?" Mom asked, being the last to enter the dojo. We all nodded. She had her red hair up in a high ponytail and was wearing a form-fitting red/white top with matching sweats. Some sort of gold design ran up the leg of it but she moved so fast, I couldn't get a good look.

"What your about to witness in this room must stay in this room." my father said sternly.

"Yes sir" "Yes papa" "Understood" were the responses. He nodded, satisfied. Then looked at my mother; who stared straight back at him. Her expression was unusually solemn. She almost always sported a smile but I figured it was a ninja thing. They changed into their fighting stances, which were different. Dad looked to us.

"Right now, we are about to engage in combat using two variations of a similar style" he explained, "I am using Hayabusa clan ninitsju."

"And I'm using Mugen Tenshin clan Ninjustu" my mother added expertly. In our minds, we took notes.

"Watch carefully but do not try this yourselves." my father went on, in an I-mean-business tone. Again we all nodded and he returned his gaze to mom. She was ready. They bowed and suddenly they both disappeared. Toshi, Jillian, and I stood up in amazement.

"They really are ninjas!" Jillian exclaimed. My parents soon re-appeared and mom tried to high kick dad, who blocked it with ease. He attempted a sweep kick but mom leapt and kicked dad in the chest. He staggered back slightly but when mom came in to take advantage, he countered her punch by grabbing her arm and throwing her into the air! We watched as dad teleported up, catching mom in mid air and then letting her down softly.

"Teach me that!" Toshi yelled, still on his feet. We all were, this was more exciting then any martial arts movies we've seen! Neither parent paid him any mind and continued fighting. Mom was quickly gaining the upper hand with crazy punch, punch, kick combos. A flip and a teleport were thrown in for variety, keeping dad guessing. But, he soon caught on to her little game and began countering. It was insane! He'd counter, then she'd counter, then he'd teleport, then she'd do a combo, he'd do a counter then combo, and so on with fighting moves we've never seen them use before. Suddenly, they stopped, bowing at one another.

"Two minutes are up" dad said. All three of us stared at them in amazement.

"You never told me you could teleport!!" Toshi exclaimed. "I gotta know how to do that!!"

"Me too!" I yelled.

"No, the technique is far too advanced" he answered, "first; you must complete your basic training." I smiled. I was closest to finishing my basic training. My brother pouted, he was quite a ways off.

"Who wants Strawberry Millefeuille?" My mother asked sweetly. Toshi and Jillian both yelped with delight and followed my mom downstairs. I stayed in the dojo with dad.

"You don't want dessert?" He asked me, smiling.

"I'm ready to finish basic training" I responded. He sighed.

"Tomorrow morning, 5 a.m sharp."

"Thank you"

"Kaida?"

"Yes?"

"Could you bring up some Millefeuille for me?"

"Of course papa" I left the room. And the next morning, as promised Dad had me complete the basics and even taught me to teleport (after much pleading on my part).

Jillian was still psyched about last night's events.

"You weren't kidding when you said your parents were ninjas!" She said loudly. I quickly hushed her.

"It's a secret, remember?" I reminded. Jillian nodded.

"Not like anyone else would believe me anyway…" she added playfully.

It was true; Jillian had a huge imagination and was obsessed with all that was anime related. That was what attracted her to me, I was told (by her) I looked like a Kunoichi from a fighting game she loved playing…and then would tell everyone I was a Kunoichi. She was humored but not believed. I couldn't prove to everyone I really was because of my father's strict rules about not using martial arts outside the house. Mom backed him up on it, though neither explained why. I knew never to use it against someone but showing off a couple of moves couldn't cause any harm, right? So I kept it a secret that I was a Kunoichi from my best friend from grades first thru eleventh. During our senior year of high school, I had to tell her. She was like a sister to me at this point and I felt really bad about hiding part of my life from her. I showed off some moves, and Jillian thought I was awesome. Then I told her my parents were both ninjas. The rest is history.

The bell rang for lunch.

"I don't know why, but I'm still in the mood for more of your mom's strawberry millefeuille." Jillian slightly whined.

"They have strawberry short cake?" I tried compromising, pointing towards them as we waited in the lunch line.

"It's not the same."

Only two cakes were left and one was taken by platinum blonde girl and the other was grabbed by Kentaro. I became really mad, I wanted that last slice! He saw me eyeing the slice and grinned. I rolled my eyes and settled for a humble slice of apple pie. Jillian followed suit and we sat down at our usual spot in the lunch room, the table right next to the window.

"Darn Kentaro…" I mumbled.

"Why don't you ask him to trade?" Jillian wondered smiling, "I bet he'd give it to you for a kiss!"

"No way!" I responded quickly, "that guy is a total jerk."

"Then use some slick ninja moves on him, didn't you learn how to teleport this morning? I say go for it!"

"I'm not that good yet and besides, my dad is super strict about using martial arts outside the house."

"Even for an emergency?"

"Yea…well, this isn't really an emergency. It's just Kentaro being Kentaro." I sighed. Then I started imagining beating the living daylights out of him …

"Hey Kaida."

My thoughts were interrupted by a deep male voice. Knowing exactly who it was, I stood up to face Kentaro face to face. Well, not actually face to face. The dude beat me by 7 inches. Either way, I glared up at him as evilly as possible. He grinned.

"Why are you here anyway?" I snarled. He continued grinning.

"To ask you out on a little date."

"NEVER!!" I yelled. The entire lunch room went silent and focused their attention on us. Kentaro looked at me thoughtfully.

"Sorry if I offended you or anything but honestly, I'd like for us to hang out, ya know?" He sounded legit. Plus he was hot.

"But still-"

He grabbed me for a kiss. I let him. Jillian choked on her pie. People gasped. Some clapped. A teacher grunted and told us to break it up. The date was set…


	3. Chapter 3: Meet the parents

"Awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww!!" my mother cooed, "your first date!!"

Yes, it was my first real date with a boy. Why did I wait so long? Why did it take so long? Kentaro was the first to tell me what color my eyes were. I know, sounds silly but all the guys I've asked this too would name the color of my shirt. So, after the lunch room incident I asked and he got it right the first time. (I made sure to close my eyes right after asking.)

"They are as green as a springtime meadow touched only by gentle rain showers." was his poetic response. I hit his arm gently for the overly dramatic answer, though liking it very much.

"Oh no…" I heard my father groan.

"So, is it with that Kentaro boy you've been talking about?" My mother continued, ignoring dad. I nodded, blushing slightly. I've spoken to her before about him and not in the good way. Yet mom saw through the negative knowing well I liked him.

"Ooooh!!" she exclaimed, "we should find you something beautiful to wear for your date…but what?"

"I was thinking maybe a turtle-neck sleeveless T and a mini ski-" Dad grunted, " err, long skirt would do."

"Shall we go to the mall then?"

"Sure!"

Shopping with my mom was always plenty of fun. It was because of her unusually keen fashion sense and intimate knowledge of my exact tastes. Also, mom had a young look about her, many swearing she's my older sister. It was probably because my Mother was always happy. Even when scolding or sad, she smiled either with her lips or her eyes. I never understood why. Jillian claims its because my Dad is so, in her words, freakin' hot! She even told me once that if Toshi were sixteen (he was 14 at the time), she would totally date him since he was a spitting image of Dad. Mom said that the long ponytail Toshi sported was exactly like the one father used to have. His is short now and getting shorter …

So Mom had me try out a whole bunch of clothes at different stores, allowing me to purchase three outfits from each. "Because you just never know." was her shopping motto. In the third store, we met up with Jillian.

"You went shopping without me!!" she whined, trying to sound hurt. I knew Jillian hated clothes shopping, unless it was anime related.

"Let me guess, sale down at The House of Anime?"

"No, I'm here to help my friend prepare for her date."

I raised an eyebrow.

"Fine, it was a buy 2, get 1 free sale...on the popular mangas like Tenjho Tenge, -"

It wasn't long before we all headed to the House of Anime. The store was brightly lit and brilliantly painted to capture the essence of thier products. If you could name it, they had it. Me and Jillian were both huge Tenjho Tenge fans, but my mom wasn't too into it. In fact, she once said it reminded her of something painful in her own past and left it at that. Jillian thought maybe my mom was referring to Maya, one of the main characters.

"Maybe your Dad had hurt your mom's brother and she couldn't find it in her heart to forgive him."

"What?!" I exclaimed, " my mom doesn't even have a brother! Plus, why would she have married Dad then?"

"Because he was just too darn hot too pass up?" she had joked.

I was still thinking about my mother's words. To be honest, neither one of my parents talked much of their past. All I knew was they had originally lived in Japan, were ninjas, and decided to raise a family in America. I did find it odd that I knew so little about them, I don't even know my father's first name...Bam!

I accidentally bumped into someone.

"I'm so sorry!" I apologized quickly. The girl didn't look at me nor move a muscle. She looked different from anyone I've ever seen before...was her hair purple?

Yes, but not an in-your-face purple but a dark violet that completely hid her face from my view.

"Excuse me?" I asked politely. She was as still as a statue.

"Hello?" Was she deaf? I knew a little sign language and formed the letters h-e-l-l-o. Nothing.

"Hola? Bonjour? Osero? Ciao?" I greeted in all the languages I knew.

No reply, I finally let it go.

"That was weird," I muttered under my breath.

Six newly purchased mangas later, our little group was off . I looked to see if that girl was still there and sure enough, she was. Only this time, the girl looked dead at me. I froze, were her eyes _red_? I mean _blood red _and on top of that, the girl wore super heavy black eye shadow. It was like looking into the eyes of a devil.

"Sayonara, " she smirked evilly, waving.

I ran out of that store and didn't stop until I reached the food court. It was not long before Jillian caught up.

"What was that all about?" she asked while trying to catch her breath. Mom walked over.

"N-no-nothing," I stuttered, " I, um, saw a bug."

"What kind of ninja are you? Running from bugs!"

We all laughed, with me very relieved that neither one pressed the issue any further. Especially my mother, she probably knew what the true source of my fear had been anyway.

Mom bid us adieu, telling us she was going to buy a little something for herself.

On the way home, I spotted a bag marked Victoria's Secret...

_A few hours later..._

I was ready for my date, deciding on wearing a tight, medium length pink dress with white boots. My mom put my hair in a high ponytail, brushing the bangs away from my eyes. _Now for the 'fun' part…waiting._

Patiently, I sat down near the front door while Toshi kept looking out the window to my left and then ducking.

"What are you doing?" I asked him, slightly annoyed by his antics.

"Waiting to see your booooyyyffffrrriieenddd." he slurred mockingly. I glared at him, this wasn't the time for him to go into annoying little brother mode.

"Why not be a good little ninja and teleport to China or something?" I growled. Toshi smiled.

"After I see your bbbbbbooooooooyyyyyyfffffffrrrrriiiiieeeeennnnnddddddd." he answered again, slurring even more. I couldn't take it anymore, reaching for him. Toshi tried to move out of the way but I already had grabbed him. Then I threw him against the wall. Instead of hitting it, he simply ran up it! Then he jumped on my shoulders, dong a handstand and flipped. His knees hit my back, causing me to splatter against the wall. I felt so stupid…he got me pretty good.

"K.O.!" Toshi laughed but his victory was short-lived when a shadow fell across the two of us. Dad.

"She started it!" Toshi yelled and ran upstairs to his room. I turned around to face him. He frowned at me.

"Dad I-"

"You were too careless…what happened to this mornings training? I hope that boy hasn't gotten you distracted…"

"No, I just attacked Toshi out of annoyance. I'll be more focused next time."

He just nodded. Then right before I could sit-

"He's here" Dad said out of the blue. In a couple of seconds, I heard the doorbell ring. Whoa, talk about your ninja senses…

I quicklye ran to the door, then hesitated. _Its only Kentaro_...I reminded myself..._no need to be nervous. _

"Um, uh, Yea, Hey-Hi Kentaro", I greeted awkwardly while opening the door. So much for not being nervous.

"Um,Uh, yea,hey-hi yourself", he replied with a wink. My mom bowed.

"It is very nice to meet you Kentaro," she said in her signature sweet tone, " isn't it?" Mom looked to Dad.

"Quite." Was his mono reply. I could already tell Dad didn't like him.

"It's an honor to meet you both," Kentaro responded politely, bowing.

"Oh, ho, whoa, that's yur bbbboooooyyyyfffrrrriieenndd!" Toshi yelled leaning over the stair railing above us, " Haha! He could've done better!"

"Toshi, be polite to guests!" Mom scolded.

"Besides," Dad added quietly, " it may be more the other way around…"

My mom shot him a sharp look.

Between my father and Toshi, I figured it was going to be a long night.

We all sat down in the living room, with me sitting down on the red sofa next to Kentaro. Dad sat in his brown leather reclining chair located just opposite of us with Mom sitting on the arm to his right. Toshi opted to sit on the bottom stair just outside the living room entrance.

"Sorry about earlier," I whispered to Kentaro as quietly as possible. My father had the hearing of a hawk…or maybe even better.

"It's ok," he said smiling, " just as long as you like me…"

Maybe Kentaro wasn't such a bad guy.

"We're not going to keep you two here for long," my mom spoke first.

"Only as long as needed," Dad followed with quickly. Toshi snickered in the hallway knowing full well that usually meant a good two hours...with luck. When I first introduced Jillian, it took the entire two hours of questioning before my Dad accepted her as my friend. Now, how long would it take for a boyfriend?

"His name is Kantaro Takahashi , he's a straight A student, and we first met in tenth grade during Chemistry. " I blurted out, hoping to speed up the process.

"That's wonderful", mom commented. Dad shrugged. Not good...he wasn't convinced. I went on.

"He also studies the martial art if _Ba ji _do, did I say that right?"

"_Ba ji Quan_." Kentaro corrected heplfully. Dad raised an eye brow.

"How long?" he asked gruffly.

"Ever since I was five sir."

"Isn't that awesome? And Kentaro has dinner reservations at-" I looked to him to fill in.

" Kyoto in Bloom."

"Fancy," Mom said approvingly.

"Yea and we really need to get going Papa. We'll be back by eleven ,sharp." I promised.

"Nine," was the response. I should've known better then to think this would be easy.

"Ay!" Mom sighed, gently slapping his shoulder.

"Fine, ten."

Another slap, only it looked a little harder…

"…"

"Don't listen to your father", mom said pulling rank, "be back by eleven, your usual curfew."

"But to be in good graces, coming back at ten would be best, lest I have to track you down," Dad warned.

"Your really impossible sometime," mom muttered, folding her arms.

" Its ok Mrs. Hayabusa, " Kentaro replied, " I'll bring your daughter home at ten." They both just stared at him. Me and Toshi just stared at him. Hayabusa? Our last names were Tomonobu (Author winks) .

"Uh, Mrs. Tomonobu , please." my mother corrected, eyeing him suspiciously.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I wasn't aware you decided to change it."

Dad's eyes narrowed dangerously. If he didn't like him before, he hated Kentaro now. I leaned in close so I could whisper in his ear, " Shush."

"No, let the boy explain himself." Dad said, with a hint of anger in his voice. Kentaro stared back, returning my father's glare. Oh great, the feelings between the two are mutual…

"Seriously, w-we should let them be on their way," mom spoke up nervously. She was about to get up when Dad gently wrapped his hand around her wrist.

"Not yet."

She unwillingly sat back down.

"Are you not Ryu Hayabusa sir?" Kentaro asked boldly.

"Who?!" Toshi yelled from the hallway. The way he quickly looked down meant he hadn't meant to say it so loudly.

"You know this how?" Dad snapped.

"Anybody whose met anyone from a Dead or Alive tournament knows exactly who you are. And believe me or not," Kentaro's face softened, " I'm a huge fan of the super ninja."

"Who exactly is this anyone that told you?"

"My mother, you may remember her, Kokoro?"

"Kokoro!" My mother instantly recognized with glee, " I knew you reminded me of someone…my goodness, you have her eyes!"

"You should've mentioned her earlier; I was about to kill you." My father said, standing up.

Kentaro laughed nervously, "Glad I wasn't too late then, huh?"

He just stared at him. It worried me, had Dad been serious about killing Kentaro?

Toshi met my father at the living room's entrance.

"Wait, what's a Dead or Alive? It sounds like something out of a video game."

" I wish it had been ." my father replied bitterly.

"And what's with the Ryu Hayabusa stuff? Was that an undercover ninja name you used to have? Can I use it, it sounds sooooo cool!"

"Ryu is my birth name and Hayabusa is the name of my clan." He explained.

"You had your own clan!? Does that mean you were the head ninja?!"

"I'm done, Kaida I bid you and Kentaro a goodnight. Be back by eleven like your mother said and if he tries anything, the rule about not using your martial arts outside the house will be automatically lifted."

"Goodnight papa," I said bowing. Toshi pouted, he was still curious about Dad's past. I was too...and about to go on a date with the guy who had all the answers…


	4. Chapter 4: Kaida's first date prt1

The restaurant we went to lived up to its name. It was beautiful; the floor was basically a large aquarium with what appeared to be millions of colorful fish. I wondered… if someone stomped the ground really hard, would they fall in?

The walls showcased skillfully painted landscapes and were lined with artfully arranged flowers that included daisies', tulips, sunflowers… the list goes on. It was like my mother's garden times five! And her garden was massive, with it taking up 2 acres of land!

Kentaro and I followed the waiter over a petite arched bridge where a small river flowed. It separated the beginning of one aquarium from the end of the one I previously admired. Only this new aquarium had sharks in it.

"Oh my gosh!" I squealed, "seriously, sharks?"

"What? You're afraid they'll jump through the glass and eat your wittle legs?" my date mocked.

"What happened to Kentaro the gentleman?" I snapped.

"Kentaro the jerk saw an opening he couldn't pass up."

I was about to hit him but we were in a classy restaurant…with quite a few people around. He was lucky; I was more then ready to use my martial arts outside of the house. We were seated and handed our menus. I had to have Kentaro help translate the menu for me; it was in several different languages to my surprise.

"I thought this was a Japanese restaurant." I groaned.

"Just recently, a new guy bought it couple of days ago. See over there?" He pointed, "There's a sushi bar in the works."

I saw where he was referring too; the room was darkened, giving off a deep blue hue, with a white floral patterned curtain trying to conceal the work zone.

"Previously it was a Mediterranean restaurant, then before that it was French, and before that it was Italian."

"How do you know all of this?" I wondered.

"I've been on a lot of dates." He bragged, folding his arms behind his head." So what would m'lady like to eat?"

Both of the dishes we ordered turned out to be delicious seafood platters, with Kentaro having led me to believe he accidentally had me order snails (So that's what _escargots_is…). Not long after we began eating, I started questioning him about my parents. He didn't seem to mind, probably thankful for something to talk about. Or if not him, I sure was.

"So my mom won the first Dead or Alive tournament after defeating someone named Raidou and my father won the second tournament by defeating a Tengu?" I repeated. Kentaro nodded.

"Then your Aunt Ayane won the third by defeating…uhh, oh-yea, this evil dude named Genra."

"Who?"

"I'm not sure, I think he was a ninja though, my mom really didn't know all that-"

"No, I mean Ayane, my aunt?"

"Your mom never told you about her sister?"

"No."

"Then you probably don't know about your Uncle either."

"I have an Uncle too?!"

"Dang, your parents are more secretive then I thought. How'd they tell you they were ninjas?"

"It's a funny story."

"I'm up for a good laugh."

_Behind the white floral curtain…_

"Shall we attack now?" one of the assassins asked anxiously.

"Are you a fool? There are too many people here; we have to wait until they exit to a more secluded area." Akane replied.

"Awwwww, but-"

"Silence! One more word and I shall slit your throat."

He quickly complied. Akane sighed looking at the young couple. The boy was laughing at whatever the girl was talking about. That same girl she had seen at the mall with her aunt…

"We can not fail this mission; the Hajin-mon clan's survival depends on it."

_Back to the lovebirds…_

"Wow! Your brother is cooler then I thought." Kentaro said, finally getting over his laughing fit.

I told him how Toshi hated Mom and Dad constantly sneaking up behind him, usually catching him in some mischief. It ranged from something as harmless as trying use his finger to sweep some icing off a freshly baked cake to skateboarding in the house. Usually, it was dad who'd snatch Toshi off the board by the shirt collar (Sometimes as soon as he got on!). This particular day, Toshi swore to me he was gonna skateboard in the house without getting caught. I bet him ten dollars with the rules being he couldn't get caught for four minutes. Toshi started off grinding along the stair railing when he quickly flipped off, kicking the skateboard into a nearby open closet. Mere seconds later, Dad was looking down at us from the top of the stairs. Once he left, Toshi grabbed his skateboard and started grinding again. Two minutes later, He stopped again, hiding it behind the large potted plant next to the staircase. This time Mom was checking on us. She left to tend to her garden and Toshi continued on. Three minutes had passed and I was worried me and my ten were to be parted. Then Toshi made a mistake while attempting a crazy-looking skateboarding trick, crashing loudly. He fell head first into the potted plant with his board no where in immediate sight. Mom came rushing in first to see her son's face covered in dirt. Before she could ask questions, we all heard Dad give out a small yelp before seeing Toshi's skateboard go flying into the kitchen. Another sound of glass shattering signaled it made its way through the back door into the garden (where it was later found). As all that happened, we caught Dad running along the ceiling! Then he safely back flipped to the ground where we all were standing.

"Did you just trip on Toshi's skateboard?" Mom asked curiously. He nodded and glared at Toshi.

"You were-"

"Hold that thought Papa!" Toshi suddenly yelled. Looking to the clock, I gasped, four minutes had officially passed, "ok, now."

He got the scolding of a lifetime and once our parents were done, Toshi smiled.

"By the way Papa, how'd you run on the ceiling like that?"

"So, does Toshi still skateboard around the house?" Kentaro continued.

"Nope, Dad said that if he ever did, he'd stop teaching him ninitsju. Enough said."

"Hehe, alright, how'd Mummy get caught?"

I told him that when I was seven, Mom was letting me help her bake a cake for Dad's birthday. She did all the measuring and gave me the cups to pour the various ingredients into the cake bowl. For a split second, she turned around to hand me the big wooden spoon so I could mix up the batter. I also had my back to the bowl. Turned back around, had some messy fun mixing up the batter with mom, and then she put it in the oven. It wasn't long before something bad happened. I was sitting in front of the oven watching the cake rise, and rise, and rise, and rise…"Kaida!!" My mother screamed flipping over the table to get to me. She scooped me up in her arms and before I knew it, I was on the living room couch with cherry blossom leaves in my lap. Toshi was right there, covered in what later was found out to be baking soda. There was an explosion from the kitchen and Mom came into the room, glaring at Toshi. She was covered in cake batter. That's when Dad decided to come in, choosing today to spend his lunch break at home. He took one look at mom, one look at me, and one look at Toshi. He went back to work.

"I would've left too!" Kentaro laughed, "So I'm guessing she teleported? I heard when Kasumi teleports, she leaves behind cherry blossoms."

"Yea, but at the time, we had no idea what she had done. Toshi guessed she ran along the ceiling like Papa had, only way faster."

"Your family sounds sooo cool. I should've asked you out sooner."

I blushed, He winked, no one said a word.

"So, what else do you know about my Aunt and Uncle?" I asked, finally breaking the awkward silence.

"Not a whole lot, my mom wasn't very close to them. Your Uncle's name was Hayate and uh, Ein at one time in the past. Something about brainwashing, anyway, he's your mom's older brother and your Papa's best friend. As for your Aunty Ayane, she and Kasumi didn't get along to well, at one time even trying to kill each other."

"Kill, as in literally, kill?"

Kentaro nodded, "Which is probably why you'll never see her for Christmas." Then he added, "Nor Uncle Hayate for that matter."

"He was trying to kill mom too?"

"Yes."

"My goodness…" I trailed off in deep thought. Such a horrible past, and yet she can still smile? Then I thought about Jillian and her reasoning behind the smile...

"Were they after my father too?" I questioned.

"Not at first but when he kept thwarting their plans to kill your mother, they went after him as well."

"Why were they trying to kill her?"

"She ran away from her clan, the Mugen-Tenshin. It's the law that if you abandoned them, they kill you."

I went silent, letting the information sink in. Kentaro smiled sadly at me.

"You should really talk to your parents about this…" he said, "I probably told you way too much as is."

"No, no, thank you. I'm now beginning to understand so much and my poor mother…I couldn't imagine, why did she run away in the first place? Was it for a good reason? Was it so she could be with Dad or something?" My eyes were getting moist. Kentaro quickly waved to a waiter for the check.

"Yea, I told you way too much." He sighed. Then Kentaro looked back at me and in a gentle tone, " Hey, lets go for a stroll down at the park. It'll help you relax."

I nodded; the fresh air would do me some good. As we left, I couldn't help but notice a young man with a brown ponytail sitting behind us. He was trying conceal his face behind a menu. But the way Kentaro held my hand as we left caused me not to call out the little spy…


	5. Chapter 5: Kaida's first date prt 2

Kentaro and I walked in peaceful silence down the worn out path lined with trees who've just recently regained their emerald crowns. It had been a cold winter but spring was finally here. I kept thinking back to my mother being a runaway ninja. In order for them to want to kill her so badly , it must've met she was a high-ranking member of the clan, right? I desperately wanted to ask Kentaro, but I knew he wouldn't tell me. A soft breeze rustled the leaves ever so gently causing me to relax a little. I needed to stop thinking so much about this…thats when I realized Kentaro had his arm wrapped around my waist. He was starting to slow me down and I turned my thoughts completely to him. _Here it comes,_ I knew, _my first kiss. _There was another rustle in the trees but this time, no breeze. Kentaro and I froze in our tracks.

"Think it's your Dad following us?" He whispered, grey eyes scanning the surroundings.

"No, he'd be way sneakier about it. But I have an excellent feeling its…TOSHI!! GO HOME!!"

Kentaro leapt back, not expecting me to yell so out of the blue. I knew that kid had been following us ever since we left the restaurant. He could be such a pest sometime! I saw Toshi climb out of the tree and walked toward us. I placed my hands on my hips, ready to yell at him some more. The closer he came the more he…grew? More similar shadows leapt from the trees.

"Holy crap," Kentaro muttered, "we've got company."

The guy I thought was Toshi stepped out into the moonlight. A ninja?! One look in his eyes told me he was ready to fight. I got into my battle stance and awaited the man's first move. It was a high kick which I countered easily (Maybe spending all that time on the basics wasn't as big of a waste of time as I thought). I took him out with a mid-punch, mid-punch, high kick (launching him into the air), a good seven punches to his mid-section and a powerful elbow smash to top off my infamous eleven hit combo. He tried rising up with a sweep kick to trip me up.

"I didn't think so," I said grabbing the leg. I held it firmly, using my leg to stomp his mid-section in the exact place I'd targeted earlier. He sort of "bounced" up off the pavement and I punched his mid-section some more and then another elbow smash. He hit a tree trunk, hard. The way the ninja slumped…was he dead? I sensed two other ninjas who thought they could ambush me but I teleported out of harm's way. When one came for me, I flipped into the air and landed on his shoulders, doing a handstand. Then I leapt off, leaving him momentarily stunned just long enough so I could kick his partner in the face. Kentaro came up from behind and with a three-hit-combo, broke the man's back! _Ba ji Quan_ is no joke. The last ninja, the one who I kicked in the face, took out a weapon…nun-chunks. Kentaro and I rolled our eyes; we both had grown confident in our skills. A double-team kick left the man with a collapsed rib cage. He fell to the ground, all enemies defeated.

"That was weird," I muttered. Then to Kentaro, "Do you think these ninjas were Mugen-Tenshin?"

"They're not, we're Hajin-Mon ninjas," a chilling voice corrected. It sounded familiar…I instantly recognized her when she flipped out of the trees.

"Um..if this is about earlier today, I said I was sorry."

She glared at me with those bloody red eyes. They still sent chills down my spine.

"Idiot, I'm here to get information from you as to your parents' whereabouts."

"You don't know?" I asked surprised. She didn't follow me home from the mall?

"There was some interference...now, tell me where they are."

"Why do you need to know so badly?"

"Fine then, don't tell me. I'm sure if I kill you, that'll get them to come out of hiding."

Kentaro quickly got in front of me.

"No wait, I can take her!" I yelled to him but he shook his head.

"Get help."

I watched as Kentaro and red-eyes started to fight, realizing the true reason why he decided to fight her first. The girl was deadly _good._ She countered everything and capitalized with what had to be twelve hit combos each time. Kentaro started bleeding and I became worried. Why was he bleeding? I started rummaging thru my purse for my cell. As soon as I held it in my hands, a shuriken went straight through it! I cried out in intense pain, the shuriken had also gone through my hand (It was incredibly skinny). I ripped the sharply bladed star out and the blood flowed. With tears in my eyes, I screamed to the night sky.

"PAPA!!"


	6. Chapter 6: Ryu's memories

Ryu lay comfortably on the king-sized mattress, trying to relax. But he couldn't. He knew he was going to have to tell his children _everything_…without sugarcoating. Ryu sighed; all he had wanted to do was protect the children from their tragic past. He didn't want to tell them that their father used to kill for a living. Nor that their mother had to kill to keep living. He gazed up at the ceiling and let his mind wonder back to those bloodstained days…

It was after the 10th Dead or Alive tournament, that the efforts of ninjas and other fighters finally brought Doatec to its knees (Forever, they had believed...). Ryu and Kasumi believed this to be the end of their suffering. Or at least for Kasumi, Ryu had many adventures between his Dead or Alive appearances that he figured would not dry up anytime soon. Her brother Hayate compromised to lower her punishment from death to complete exile and if she came within 6 miles of the Mugen-Tenshin village, the sentence would become death again. She agreed sadly, her dream of returning to her family would stay just that…a dream. Kasumi then decided she wanted to stay with the super ninja because in her words… "You're all I have now." He felt for the young Kunoichi…she didn't have a home to go back too. He knew the feeling all too well and found it enjoyable to have Kasumi around. She could be so cheerful and carefree …then become so deadly and focused in the blink of an eye. Unlike him, he was always focused. She would call him out on it every chance she got.

"Oh Hayabusa-san," she would start, "why can't you relax a little?"

He'd shrug and continue fishing.

"Could you at least smile?"

Silence.

"Ryu?" she said timidly, not used to calling him by his first name. He turned to her. She looked back shyly.

"Will it make you happy if I do?" He asked, keeping his tone devoid of any emotion. He didn't mean to sound so unfeeling, it was force of habit.

"Yes," she responded, "and I bet it will make you happy too." He smiled a small smile and Kasumi's face lit up.

"You did it!" She exclaimed, barely able to contain her excitement. Ryu was glad he could bring some joy into her life. She deserved it more then anyone he knew. Yet Ryu was well aware soon he'd have to let her go find peace else where. The super ninja knew danger was coming around the corner soon and he wanted Kasumi as far from it as possible. It took him two months to present her with this thought; a man never knows how lonely he really is until he finds a companion. She shook her head violently.

"You've always been there for me; I want to return the favor."

"But I want to keep you out of needless danger." He argued but there was no changing the Kunoichi's mind.

"And if you try to abandon me in the middle of the night or something, I promise I'll stalk you from the trees, the bushes, the stars-" she suddenly went quiet.

Ryu laughed. It was more of a small chuckle…Kasumi smiled her largest smile.

"There is no reasoning with you, I see" he said, uncharacteristically sweet. She couldn't believe it. She got him to laugh. That was the last peaceful moment they would have.Hayate went back on his word.

Ryu would never understand what truly led Hayate to backstab them. Was it a high ranking member within the clan that convinced him? Or, more then likely, Ayane?

Kasumi was off taking a bath in the lake while he kept a protective eye out a couple of yards away. He made sure not to get too close to her location for fear of a "Hayabusa-san!! A little privacy please!?" or something to that degree.

There was a rustle in the bushes. Ryu moved his head slightly, the shuriken barely missing the super ninja's head. His aqua green eyes surveyed the exact area the shuriken came from. Four ninjas leapt out to attack. "_Mugen-Tenshin ninjas," _Ryu recognized as he dodged their attacks to deliver a crippling one of his own. They were no match for him. Then another set of four showed up just as he was going to get Kasumi. These four proved far trickier to defeat then the one's previous. Something wasn't right…it took a good deal of energy to defeat them.

"Very nice Ryu" a familiar voice taunted. He unsheathed his sword. Hayate.

"What are you doing?" he inquired, his back turned.

"Finishing business that should have been taken care of earlier." was the simple response. Ryu noted the coldness.

"Kasumi has not been anywhere near your village."

"And you are so sure of this because..?"

"I have been with her the entire time."

"I must kill her Ryu, regardless of the previous agreement. And in turn, I must kill you as well."

Ryu finally turned to his best friend of so many years and looked him dead in the eyes.

"Why the sudden change in heart?"

"Forgive me." Hayate muttered drawing his sword.

Ayane cannoned kicked Ryu on the side of his abdomen. He had seen it coming but couldn't react fast enough due to the past attacks leaving him quite exhausted.

"Ryu, you assisted in the runaway's survival several times, killing my men. Many of them…" Hayate said looking at the bodies of the ninjas who were freshly slayed by the Dragon ninja, "and for that you must die."

Ayane attacked again, katana in hand. Ryu blocked a couple of her attacks with his sword but she quickly found an opening and stabbed him. Ryu felt the sharp pain but swallowed it. He had to protect Kasumi. That's why Hayate wanted him dead first. Ryu flipped to avoid Ayane's second attack and attempted in slicing her back wide open. She ducked and narrowly avoided his sword. The battle went on for what seemed like hours this way, with Ayane slowly gaining the upper hand. Ryu was growing tired and she sensed it. Ayane became far more aggressive now, landing blow after murderous blow. Ryu was bleeding profusely form wounds on his chest and back. There was even a cut on his forehead that was originally met for his neck.

Ayane knew his moves all too well but Ryu was determined to defeat her. "_She's going to get cocky and make a mistake" _He thought to himself. He waited for the moment to present itself. It didn't take too long. Ayane kicked Ryu into a tree and was ready to deal the final, fatal blow straight between the eyes. Her execution was slow, as to taunt him. He grabbed her wrist, slammed her katana wielding arm into the tree, snatched the deadly blade, and jammed it though the limb. She cried out in pain, Ryu had nailed her arm to the tree trunk using her own weapon. Then he turned his gaze to Hayate, whose eyes were on his injured half-sister. They quickly shifted to the super ninja, who was soaked in his own blood. Even injured, Ryu was still a threat.

"This will end today," Ryu nearly snarled, "even if that means in your death."

"You are sadly mistaken, only you and Kasumi shall lose your lives today."

"We shall see."

Ryu allowed Hayate to take the offensive, with Hayate doing so reluctantly. As children, He always had a habit of baiting Hayate and then utterly defeating him in the blink of an eye with a well timed _izuna-oteshi_. For Ryu, this time was different. He was fading quickly from the loss of blood. He'd have to do something fast… Ryu's stab attempt missed. Hayate grinned, finally realizing his friend was actually indeed weak and not simply baiting him into a mistake. Unlike Ayane, Hayate decided to keep things slow. Ryu could feel his body weakening; his mind hazy. Finally, Ryu fell to his knees unable to continue defending himself. Hayate stood over the fallen ninja.

"You're making this too easy Hayabusa" he mocked, "on your feet so you can die an honorable death."

Ryu's breathing was becoming shallow. He knew what Hayate was really trying to do. He was waiting for him to bleed to death. Ryu looked up at the leader of the Mugen-Tenshin clan but not in respect. It was in anger; the coward didn't want to soil his sword with the blood of his former friend. The dragon ninja stayed on his knees.

"Why not just kill me Hayate?" he rasped, "get it over with?"

Hayate hesitated.

"Do it Master Hayate!" an angry voice cried out. Ayane. She had removed the dagger from her arm and bandaged the wound with her dark violet headband.

"Quiet!" was the harsh reply. Ryu's opening. He got into a crouching position and head-butt the ninja of the wind back first into a tree. Hayate screamed and lay still, Ryu's blood splattered all over his white robes. Ayane gasped at this sudden act of aggression from the dying Ryu. He glared at her and she ran off. Ryu knew she wasn't simply running away from him…she was running to where Kasumi was. It would take him awhile before he could get to her, if he could get to her.

"Kasumi," he whispered tenderly, barely able to stand. _If_ _I must die, let me see her one last time…_

_Knock… Knock._

Ryu sat up for a second to see Kasumi standing beside the bedroom door.

"Yes?" he asked, more then happy for the interruption.

"Toshi left to spy on his sister, "Kasumi informed, "but you probably already knew he would."

Ryu nodded, "The only time Toshi's mischievousness proves useful."

She laughed and lay down next to him. Ryu closed his eyes for a second.

"We'll have to tell the children about our past."

"I know." was her soft spoken response. Then in a slightly nervous tone, "Do you think Doatec will ever come back?"

"I truly hope not, but if it does, they have to be ready."

"Our children?"

"They will be the first targets…if Doatec returns."

Kasumi sat up and looked down at her husband with a smile on her face.

"Lets not talk about it anymore," she said cheerfully, "I mean, we finally have the house to ourselves…"

"That's true," Ryu agreed, sitting up so they were face to face, "I think I'll go meditate."

"Ryu!!"

He grinned and brought her in for a deep kiss. Ryu could feel her hands sliding up and down his finely toned chest. He began feeling her up as well, taking in her sweet cherry blossom scent. Kasumi moved up along the bed so she could rest the back of her head against the pillows with Ryu on top. Her body was now completely bathed in the moonlight, causing her skin to glow with a goddess-like appearance. Her golden-red hair only heightened the effect.

"You're so beautiful," he whispered into her ear. She smiled and whispered, "You're so good to me Ryu..."

…

"Hayabusa-san!! You're awake!" Kasumi exclaimed with glee as he opened his eyes. Ryu was well aware he had passed out near the edge of the lake where she was bathing but hadn't seen her. Kasumi already moved down deeper into the forest like he had feared.

"What happened? You look unscathed. Did they attack you?" Ryu asked wearily. He was still weak from his wounds.

"I was hurt but not nearly like-," she suddenly started crying, "Oh!! Hayabusa-san, when I saw you! And the way Hayate spoke …he made it sound like he killed you. It made me fight all the harder until…"

"You killed Hayate?"

"No, I let him go. He promised never to bother us again. But I almost did, I was so mad at him and what he did to you-"

"You should've killed him." Ryu interrupted firmly. Kasumi sobbed even louder.

"I-I couldn't! He's still my brother and I love him! Don't you understand?! Don't you Hayabusa-san?!"

He wasn't sure of what to do at that point. Kasumi was crying into his chest, her words no longer comprehendible.

"Kasumi…he went back on his word once, what makes you believe he won't again?" Ryu questioned gently. Kasumi looked up at him.

"Because after I-I cornered him and made him promise, Ayane jumped me. Hayate told her to leave me be. Ayane looked so heartbroken, like Hayate was now stabbing her in the back. She spat at him and walked away. I couldn't believe my eyes. But I'm so glad I was able to save you so…" her voice trailed off and she buried her face into his chest once again.

Ryu knew Kasumi had more to say. "Go on," He urged.

"I know this is asking far too much from you…especially after all you've done for me. Hayabusa-san, would you turn your back on the way of the ninja with me?" She stated the last part quickly and moved away from the super ninja. He was at a loss for words. Turn his back on the only thing he knew? Ever was? Yet, Ryu realized that his body was deteriorating from all the years of non-stop fighting….leaving his wounds with virtually no time to heal. All those magical herbs used were only temporary fixes. Kasumi finally gathered the courage to look up at him. Her eyes told him she was afraid but if he went along with her, she would be ready. Ryu didn't want to say yes but he also didn't want to say no. He did need a break to give himself time to heal; both physically and mentally. Plus his feelings for Kasumi had grown during the ten years of being her protector. He couldn't imagine turning his back on her now.

"I can try but…I may not be able to in the long run." Ryu had taken his time before giving her the answer. She bowed her head; he knew that wasn't what she wanted to hear.

"Unless I grow fond of the non-ninja life style, then maybe I could leave it behind for good."

"I'll make sure you do!" She said quickly, then immediately blushed. It took Ryu a minute to figure out why the sudden change in cheek color…

"Um..no, yo-you wouldn't have to do that..." He could feel his face growing red as well. She giggled a little.

"But I'm so happy your doing this with me," Kasumi continued with a few tears escaping her eyes, "I don't know how to thank you."

"Don't be sad anymore, "Ryu said simply, using his thumb to wipe away those last remaining tears. "Just smile like you did when we were children. Put all those bad memories away and only welcome happier ones. That is how you can re-pay me."

"I promise Hayabusa-san!" She smiled and then added shyly, "and thanks again."

Ryu nodded. Kasumi's eyes began tearing up again.

"But-but if you ever want to be a ninja again one day…I-I wont stop you because I don't want to make you misera-"

"Kasumi, do not worry, I have already made up my mind. "He said rising up on shaky legs, "No matter what, I will stay by your side." He offered the Kunoichi his hand and she accepted it without hesitation.

….

He broke away from her and rushed over to the bedroom window.

"Ryu?" Kasumi called out, hoping nothing serious was happening so he'd come back to bed. He didn't respond. Kasumi slid off the mattress holding the sheet firmly around her body so she could stand next to him. The exact same feeling that just overcame Ryu was enveloping her as well.

"It can't be," she whispered. His green eyes looked down on her sadly.

"We must prepare for battle…"


	7. Chapter 7: Toshi's ambition

I was super scared but I had to do something. Kentaro collapsed from his stab wounds…he had put up a good fight. That woman was wielding a Katana with serious skill. Her red demon eyes turned to my sister with murderous intentions. No, I can't let her kill Kaida! Mustering up all the courage in my body, I threw my skateboard to the ground. The violet-haired Kunoichi spotted me and readied herself. My eyes were fixated on that katana as I boarded towards her at my highest speed. Eighty-five miles an hour last time I was clocked. Once I was within two feet of her, I teleported off the board and fell onto the soft grass below. She sliced my board in half with one graceful movement.

"Toshi!" my sister yelled happily, "You have to go get Papa and mom!"

"But that's what she wants!" I argued.

"We need them!"

"What if there are more ninjas around here even better then this chick? If our parents show up, they could get killed too. Our entire family could be wiped out!"

Kaida bit her bottom lip, knowing I was right. Looking down, I spotted the cut on her hand. I had seen the shuriken fly and heard her yell. My anger flared…that girl was going down!! She was listening to our conversation, apparently amused by it.

"It would be in both of your interests to bring your parents here." She finally spoke.

"Who the heck are you anyway?" I snapped. She grinned but her eyes were narrowed.

"Akane."

I was shocked, that was easy…time to press my luck.

"Why are you trying to kill us all?"

"To find your-"

"No, you already said that! Give me a different answer!"

Akane went quiet as she watched my sister crawl over to the fallen Kentaro. I really hoped the guy was still alive, not just because my sister liked him. But because he also had said I was cool back at the restaurant.

"The boy will live." Akane stated.

"So you're not trying to kill us?" I continued.

"My mission did not include killing anyone outside of the Hayabusa family unless absolute need. I-" She spun around to block my sister's sneak attack and kicked her smartly in the face. Kaida fell down. Hard. I leapt up while Akane was still half distracted…Ha! Didn't I feel stupid ? There's never a time when a ninja is distracted…Especially the good ones. Using the same leg that knocked over my sister, I got kicked in the one place any male ninja, novice or master, was weakest. It occurred so quickly that Kaida and I fell at the exact same time.

"Bitch!!" I cried while rolling around in the grass in intense pain.

"Now let's see…which child's death will cause the most grief?" Akane smirked, "The precious older daughter or the baby of the family."

"You won't be finding out," Kaida snarled. She rose to her feet and took her fighting stance. Akane sheathed her katana, implying mockingly that she didn't need a weapon to win this fight. This time, my big sis proved her wrong. Sticking to pure basics, Kaida overwhelmed red-eyes with a flurry of strategically placed blows and counters of what had to be psychic precision. Akane was slowly forced to back up near the place where I was still whimpering. Soon it'd be my turn to prove myself against her. I started feigning still being in pain and once close enough…damn it!! The Katana was brought out once more. Kaida was getting sliced left and right. Miraculously, my sister was able to knock the lethal blade of Akane's hand, with it landing mere inches from my head. _Ok, now it's my turn_. I remembered back to when mom and Dad had shown off some slick ninja moves, with Dad doing one that I particularly liked. Akane reached for her weapon and I quickly grabbed her outstretched arm. Before Akane could react, she was already sent flying up in the air via my foot. Kaida and now Kentaro were both watching me as I teleported high into the air to grab Akane around the waist…just like Dad did to mom. Only I wasn't planning a gentle landing.

"YYYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!" was my battle cry while spiraling downwards toward the ground.

"No!! The Izuna-Oteshi!!" she cried right before her head made devastating impact with the ground. It was a shock Akane's skull wasn't cracked opened. But she was knocked unconscious.

"And that's what you get for messin' with a Hayabusa!!" I said defiantly, giving her two thumbs down.

"You did it! I can't believe it, Oh my god! Toshi, how did you do that? When did Dad teach you how to teleport? I thought you were still learning the basics!" Kaida exclaimed in one breath.

"Um, yeah I rock. Saw Dad do it last night…While spying on your training sessions, I picked up the teleporting method and that was my first time doing the …-"

"Izuna-Oteshi, your father's most powerful attack." A new voice finished for me. Another ninja, did I guess it or _Did_ I guess it? This guy looked like a master ninja, sporting the blackest of the black fabric that loosely covered him from head to toe…His reddish brown eyes being the only thing visible. He also sported a way cool red ninja scarf, matching gloves that probably up to his elbows, and a sword in a heavily jeweled hilt. A head piece just above his eyes completed the look, appearing to be jewel encrusted like his sword hilt. I refused to let this intimidate me, though.

"Yay, more ninjas to beat the living snot out of," was my reply. He frowned at me, not amused.

"For someone with such little skill, you talk plenty of trash."

"Little skill? Give me a break! Did you not just see me izuna…-, uh, drop that ninja gal? I got skill."

"Your sister did all the work. You simply got lucky."

"Alright, you want a fight? Cause you just asked for one!"

I teleported behind him and went for a high kick to the back of the head. He ducked it with ease and swept kicked me. Damn it…should've seen that one coming. I jumped right back up to my feet only to fall on my butt about hundred times more after. I couldn't block a single thing! And countering? Ha, forget about it, he'd just grab me and throw me halfway across the park. Kaida tried to help me by yelling "He's going for a high punch! Wait, low kick! He's going for a low kick!" It didn't help; the ninja master would switch it up in mere milliseconds to something else. On the hundredth time of hitting the unforgiving ground, I stayed down.

"Try again once you finished basic training kid." The master ninja directed kindly. I was shocked; he could've rubbed this in my face big time. Guess being respectful is part of the master ninja deal…

"Hopefully now you will stop trying to learn ahead of yourself, " I heard Dad say.

Wait a second…Dad?? I looked up to see him gazing down at me. I must've been a sorry sight, not even being able to rise to my feet. Wow…this was the first time I ever saw him in full ninja gear. He had on a tight (maybe too tight…) black, leather body suit with a cool silver metal head piece, a jet black scarf, incendiary shurikens going down each leg in a diagonal pattern (awesome!!) , and the Dragon sword in a black leather hilt. A quick shift in vision revealed Mom being by Kentaro, bandaging his many wounds. Kaida's was already taken care off. Whoa…what the heck was my mom wearing?! It was black and it was skimpy…opening up below the waist to show my mother sporting a thong!! The top half was awfully open as well, emphasizing my mother's above average bust size and cleavage levels. I would think it'd be some sort of ninja lingerie or something to be worn in the bedroom only…oh god!! Ewwww!! Bad image, bad image!!

"So the infamous Ryu Hayabusa finally decides to show himself." The evil ninja (He's no longer master ninja now, my papa's here!) stated with a slight sarcastic tone to his voice.

"You don't really think we've just arrived, right Shishio?" Dad replied coolly. The evil ninja has a name.

"Anyway, I warned you I'd come for your family if you refused to comply."

Mom shot a look at Dad of pure confusion. Oooh…someone's been keeping secrets.

"I'm impressed you actually succeeded in finding us. Your reward is death!"

In a split second, blades were being wielded by two highly skilled ninjas. Mom grabbed my arm and she teleported us to where Kaida and Kentaro resided. It was amazing, watching the two trading blows…I relished the day when I'd be able to fight like that; unlike now, where all I can do is get my butt handed to me. There was a yelp and Shishio's jet black clothes were stained with red. Dad threw a wicked uppercut that nearly threw the man off his feet then smartly kicked him in the gut. Before Dad could admister the final, fatal blow, Shishio cried out-

"Fine, kill me! But hear me out on this Hayabusa… as my final wish (my Father hesitated). I understand you no longer want anything to do with us ninja but we are still your brethren. And we're in serious trouble, Doatec has returned with a vengeance.-"

"Doatec!?" my father repeated backing away from the fallen ninja.

"Yes, they have brainwashed many clan leaders and the one's they could not were killed. Ayane was able to hold her own but Hayate didn't make it. At least thats what I heard. All I know is he was replaced with a Doatec puppet. Now all the clans are teaming up to completely wipe out the Hajin-mon before they begin trying to destroy each other. Its pure chaos, you must come back to help set things straight. You _both_ must come back."

"Hayate…" my mother whispered sadly. I could see the tears beginning to form. Hayate, the name sounded familiar, didn't Kentaro say something about him? Mom suddenly stood up.

"W-we should go back Ryu." She said timidly, "I owe this to my clan. I abandoned them once; I don't want to repeat the same mistake."

"You won't be if they don't know you have any idea of what's happening," father retorted harshly. Mom shivered a little.

"Ryu, please. We must go back, Doatec is on the rise again and the ninja clans need our help!"

"We are only two ninjas, what can we do?"

"Plenty and you know it Ryu Hayabusa!! We can longer hide neither ourselves nor our children, we've been found. We must fight!"

Dad grunted angrily and turned his back to mom. She walked over to him; placing a gentle hand on his shoulder.

"I know what you're trying to do but its time to wake up from this dream life and return to the harsh reality of our past. Kaida and Toshi will have to come with us; it'd be far too dangerous to leave them alone with Doatec around. You said so yourself, our kids would be the first targets. We have to fight, Ryu. We all have too."

He finally turned to face her.

"One month." Dad said simply, "to prepare everyone."

"Thank you Hayabusa and Kasumi, Ayane will be pleased," Shishio bowed, rising to his feet with the now conscious Akane's help. Then he added, "But if you do not arrive on the time appointed, we will track you all down and kill one member of your family." They disappeared in a puff of dark gray smoke.

"Damn Doatec to hell," Dad snarled to himself. Then He and mom spoke quietly amongst themselves with me desperately trying to eavesdrop. I crawled about two inches towards them when they both moved away a good two feet.

"Whatever they're talking about, they don't want us to know," Kentaro commented. He had been watching me.

"Yeah, obviously." I replied teasingly. He sort of grinned before turning to Kaida. I resumed trying to spy on my parents while also staying within earshot of Kentaro and Kaida.

"Some first date, huh?" Kentaro said. Kaida giggled and they went quiet…Too quiet if you ask me. I turned around to see them kissing.

Ewwwwwwww, More bad images…


	8. Chapter 8: Kokoro's update

"No, don't fall for it!" Kokoro yelled into the TV monitor; feeling quite foolish immediately after. The guards chuckled amongst themselves, enjoying her misery as always. Her son was nearly killed by that young ninja girl Akane. Yet, Kokoro could not be angry with the kuniochi. She was being manipulated just like everyone else. Poor girl…as soon as she and Shishio returned to the Hajin-mom village, they would be captured and brought here. Kokoro shook her head to hold back the tears, Ayane was already captured. They forced Kokoro to watch as the violet haired kuniochi was strapped down and injected with the brain-washing serum.

"Kokoro! " Ayane yelled to her. She had only stared back. "Don't let them to this to us! We've got to stop-aaaahhhhhh!!"

The needle penetrated deep within her right arm.

"Help me…" the ninja was fading. Kokoro wanted so desperately to help her. It was not Ayane's nature to call for help...which made it all the more painful._ She needs you, do something!_ But nothing could be done, Ayane was brainwashed and sent home to prepare the trap for Ryu and Kasumi.

_Why can't they brainwash me..._Kokoro wondered bitterly to herself. Why did they want her to be fully aware? What if she was able to break free and warn the others? Kokoro leaned back in the executive chair and sighed. There was no escape. She was trapped. The fax on her desk began printing. _Oh-no, the list again…_

"Alright, update." One of the guards said happily.Once the page was finished printing, he grabbed to read but then said. "Oh, where are my manners? Ladies first."

He slapped it down in front of her, giving Kokoro a sadistic grin. She didn't touch it but she did read:

**Kaida**

Fighting style: Mugen Tenshin clan style ninitsju

Nationality: Japanese

Gender: Female

Birthday: August 28

Age: 17

**Toshi**

Fighting style: Hayabusa clan style ninitsju

Nationality: Japanese

Gender: Male

Birthday: March 21

Age: 16

**Kentaro**

Fighting style: Ba ji Quan

Nationality: Japanese

Gender: Male

Birthday:July 22

Age: 18

**Jillian**

Fighting style: Karate

Nationality: German

Gender: Female

Birthday: December 21

Age: 17

**Akane**

Fighting style: Mugen-tenshin clan ninjutusu Hajin-mon sect

Nationality: Japanese

Gender: Female

Birthday: October 31

Age: 16

**Dustin**

Fighting style: Karate

Nationality: German

Gender: Male

Birthday: January 2

Age: 20

**Josephine**

Fighting style: Pi Qua Quan

Nationality: French

Gender: Female

Birthday: July 17

Age: 16

**April**

…

"Ok, now it's my turn." The guard said snatching the paper away. Kokoro continued sitting there as still as a statue. Two more friends and their children were being dragged into the whirlpool…


	9. Chapter 9: Toshi's dream

Sirens flared in the background. Wow…now the police show up. Dad directed us all to the family mini van and homeward bound we were. Dad had removed his mask and threw on his dark blue jacket. Mom put on her light pink sweater. I leaned back in the comfortable seat and looked up at the night sky. The stars were just starting to come out. I tried making out the various star signs to help keep my mind off the newlyweds snuggling right next to me. I rolled my eyes, yuck! That kind of public affection always made my stomach turn. Plus, it being my sister one of the parties made it that much worst. We stopped at a red light and Dad grunted loudly. I turned to my left for a second to see Kentaro and Kaida finally part. I smiled.

"Thank you Papa!"

Mom giggled at my sudden outburst while Dad simply nodded. Green light…home was only a few minutes away. My eye lids grew heavy. I tried to fight the oncoming fatigue because I knew our parents were going to explain everything that just happened. And their past lives as ninjas, I hoped. I yawned and suddenly found myself standing atop a skyscraper surrounded by bluish gray fog. I was clad in a black ninja suit, similar to Dad's, just not quite as tight. My awesome black ninja scarf bellowing in the breeze. Deep within my body, I sensed a presence. Three jets shot out of the blackened night sky and I leapt high up into the air. I landed gracefully on one of the jets and realized they were un-manned. Not that it mattered, I was gonna destroy them anyway. Sticking my sword in the middle of the aircraft, it steered out of control, destroying another fellow jet. I flew over to the next jet and sliced it in half before landing on the skyscraper I had originally been standing on. The impact was like that of a comet, I left a massive crater and ran like a mad man as the missiles flew. These robotic jets had horrible aim, I dodged with ease. Then using an ultra-cool ninpo technique, I blew up the final jet and gracefully soared into the eternal darkness like a falcon…

After a hard night of ninja work, I decided to unwind by going fishing. Something me and my father used to do…I wondered where he was. But no matter, Toshi Hayabusa was now the super ninja. The new leader of the ill-fated Hayabusa clan. I caught a couple of nicely sized fish and was ready to start cooking them when something in the forest gave me an uneasy feeling. On pure instinct, I threw my bamboo hat ( it was a hot day and even super ninjas get sunburned) and a sharply pointed needle spear thing sliced right through. I got into position and caught it. A small note was attached. Ah…duty calls. I read the message before letting my campfire devour it. Two things to remember: Kill the Arch fiend and buy a new hat…

My lead led me to a night club that appeared normal enough, but a split second later people were running out of it like bats out of hell. I ran inside to see a huge purple monster who did not look like he was there to sing the "I love you, you love me" song. Upon closer investigation, I saw the creature was focusing on a rather scantily clad super blonde with the biggest pair of knockers I have ever seen on a woman (Pamela Anderson, eat your heart out!). Funny, she reminded me of one of my classmates…Rachel was her name I think? Anyway, I got back into super master ninja mode. The woman,in one graceful movement, beheaded the beast with a scythe and walked out of the club as casually as if she had finished catching up with an old friend. I followed her outside to the balcony.

"Who are you?" I inquired curiously. Had to admit, the woman had mad skills with that gigantic scythe of hers.

"I am Rachel (Hey, so she was in my class. Dang…maybe I should've asked her for her number when I had the chance), fiend hunter. You?"

"I am Toshi Hayabusa, Super-"

"Ninja." She finished smiling, "I have heard much. So, you're after the arch fiend too?"

"Yes, being of the Dragon lineage, tis my duty."

"Let me help you for a have a score to settle with him. He had seduced my twin sister and turned her into a fiend."

I nodded. Mental note: Jackpot…twins!!

A whole lot of epic battles involving ninjas and fiends, nine hundred and ninety nine hit combos, Rachel saving side missions, running on water and walls, and scaling buildings and mountains later (that was a mouthful!) , I defeated the arch fiend and destroyed the dark dragon blade. Rachel and I stood atop a small hill in the middle of the desert. At least it looked like a desert; anyway, the sun was beginning to set. Rachel turned to me, a mischievous sparkle in her eyes. Hmmm….should I? If I did, it would definitely be a one night thing. Hey, I am a super ninja and I don't have time to be involved in a serious relationship. My commitment was to my duties and my heart into being a ninja. Then again, I could use a little fun. Dang, how many times did I have to save her throughout this ordeal?

"…"

The next morning, Rachel woke up to see me fully dressed in my ninja gear.

"Toshi," she whispered reaching out to me. I turned to her briefly, with Rachel holding up the covers over that gorgeous body of hers.

"I'm sorry Rachel, but it's over." I said and vanished through the window towards the nearest hat shop.

….

The thunder roared, seeming to shake the entire house. I finally woke up to see my room aglow from lightening. My skate boarding trophies shone brilliantly, almost blinding me. I got out of bed, feeling strangely refreshed. Running to the bathroom, all my bruises were gone. Huh? I splashed my face with some cold water. At first, I was planning on just going back to bed to figure this out in the morning but my growling tummy told me otherwise. It was storming violently outside, and with the intense lightening, there was no need to turn on any lights while I made my way to the kitchen. As I cut through the living room, an eerie voice in the darkness nearly made me pee in my pants.

"Where are you going Toshi?" it had said.

"What the fu-!?" I screamed, flipping on a light. Sitting on the family sofa was Kentaro, wearing what I guessed to be one of my Dad's old shirt and pants with the blankets drawn over his legs. Kentaro started cracking up when I screamed "What are you still doing here?!"

"Your parents invited me to stay." He explained once he finished laughing.

"Why, are you engaged to Kaida now?"

"Whoa no, my mom isn't home from her business trip yet and your parents felt it wasn't safe for me to be alone so they said I could crash on the couch. Just for tonight though, I think."

"Oh."

My stomach started growling again.

"You hungry too?" Kentaro asked getting up, "I was headed for a midnight snack myself. Plus, this storm isn't really helping me get to sleep…"

I nodded in agreement and we walked into the kitchen in companionable silence.

"So whatcha in the mood for? We got _omusubi _(rice sandwiches)_, kamaboko _(fish sausage)_; _actually I'll be having that, and _strawberry millefeuille_."

Kentaro thought about it. "I'll go with the dessert."

We sat down at the kitchen table and started eating. It wasn't long before Kentaro started talking again, not that I minded. I was a bit of a chatter box myself.

"You into skateboarding?" He asked, I nodded proudly.

"If I wasn't planning on being a super master ninja, I'd be a pro skater. I've already won, like, thirty contests."

"Damn, so you're really good?"

"Heck ya dude, just come down to the skate park when you're not all over my sis and see for your self."

Kentaro chuckled slightly. "Deal."

"So what are you into?" I asked. He cocked his head to the side.

"Besides your sister? (I made a grunting noise, imitating my dad) Um…the usual, video games-"

"What do play?" I interjected excitedly. Please say…

"My god, only the best game known to modern man, Ninja Gaiden 7!"

"Yyyyyeeeesssssss!! I got super ninja status on all levels and chapters, including super ninja difficulty."

"Same here, didn't even upgrade my weapons nor used any health!"

"Liar! That's impossible, you gotta at least upgrade, especially for that last boss."

"What's that? Some skater punk doubting my gaming skills? I say put that sucker in and let's go multiplayer. See who gets the most freakin kills without dying once."

"Shoot, how about before the life bar goes yellow?"

"Awwww, you sure? I was trying to be nice."

"I can handle it, being a ninja is in my blood."

"Yea, whatever." He paused for a moment, "By the way, did you ever think the main character looks a lot like your Dad when he's in that black ninja outfit?"

"You know? He kinda does..."

Dressed in a white nightgown decorated with pink cherry blossoms, pink bunny slippers, and a low ponytail stood my sister in the entrance. She was smiling at us.

"Helllooo beautiful." Kentaro greeted grinning.

"Are you two bonding? That is so cute." She cooed. I rolled my eyes.

"Yea, guess you got my approval on him. That is until I shame him in Ninja Gaiden 7…"

"I swear, where's your Ybox 760?"

The thunder roared loudly and a really weird feeling came over me. Maybe I had kept the _kamaboko_ too long…wait no, it wasn't _that_ feeling. Suddenly, an overpowering urge caused me to leap up and speed out of the kitchen. Kentaro and Kaida followed me as I opened the door. First, mom rolled in with a trail of cherry blossom leaves in her wake. Then Dad swooped in and kicked the door shut. They were still in their ninja gear but Mom had a bloody bandage on her left thigh.

"How'd you know?!" Kentaro exclaimed surveying the chaos in the living room.

"Told you I'm a ninja, it's in my blood." was my reply. Hey, it's true…

"Oh my gosh! What happened to you guys?" Kaida freaked out, mostly addressing mom. A rain-drenched Mom started to speak but then turned to a rain-soaked Dad. He removed his mask.

"Well, when Kentaro told us his mother was on a business trip, we went to confirm. As I suspected, Kokoro was kidnapped by Doatec."

Gasps were heard, with one coming from me. Dad continued.

"We infiltrated the headquarters but it was not easy. Their security is very impressive, replacing your average guards with highly skilled assassins and ninjas. What really shocked me were the mutated dogs and birds. Apparently, those within the building are wearing a special type of cologne or perfume to mask themselves from the creature's acute sense of smell. Anything that's not protected gets attacked unrelentlessely."

"Note my leg." My mother added quietly, placing a herb looking thing on the wound. It glowed a strange gold color before disappearing altogether. Wound included. Her thigh was completely healed.

"Wow!!" I exclaimed, "how you do that!!"

"It's a special herb called herb of spiritual life. It heals only minor wounds." She explained knowledgably.

"Yes, they are a ninja's best friend." Dad said, "And we also used it on all of you."

Ok, that explains where all my bruises went. Then I my gaze shifted to Kentaro and Kaida. If I hadn't known, I'd never guessed they had been in a deadly knife fight. Their cuts and bruises were gone.

"Ok, I'm guessing those herbs aren't sold in stores." I commented. Dad smiled.

"They are, at the super secret ninja shops."

"Super secret ninja shops?!" my eyes widened.

"Yea, Murasama's shops- oh, that's right. You were asleep during the story…" Kaida reflected. Mom got up.

"Alright everyone, we didn't mean to wake you all up. Let's get back to bed."

As we all went upstairs, I saw Dad sit across from Kentaro in his usual leather brown recliner. Probably talking about Kokoro…

I jumped back into bed and Mom tucked me in like she used to do when I was younger. She smiled her usual warm smile.

"Ok Toshi, it's your turn to hear the story…"

…

And quite a tale it was.

_Sorry I'm taking so long to update, I've been playing _Ninja Gaiden 2._It rocks!! Thx to all who've been reading, I'll be introducing more new families very soon…_


	10. Chapter 10: Trust

It was the finals and a young red-haired Kunoichi was determined to win this match so she could move on to whom she truly wanted to fight. Raidou was the bastard's name, the one who had hurt both her brother and half-sister…But especially her brother. Hayate, the rightful leader of the Mugen-Tenshin clan, had fought Raidou with everything within him. Sadly, it hadn't been enough so she felt it was her destiny to finish the job. Her opponent finally arrived and her jaw dropped. His green eyes and long brown ponytail were all too familiar.

"It can't be…Hayabusa-san?" she stuttered nervously.

"Kasumi, I am here to take you home." He said sternly. She shook her head violently.

"Not until I kill Raidou!"

"If I do not bring you home now, you will be labeled a runaway. Do you know what happens to run away's Kasumi?"

"Of course I do but I must kill him…it's my destiny."

"But it is your duty to lead the Mugen-Tenshin clan while your brother heals." He countered.

"Well, if you make me go back, I will simply leave again!"

I leapt from atop the temple and landed gracefully near the two. They both looked at me, bewildered.

"My, Hayabusa-san, I was not aware you had a twin brother."

"I do not. Who are you?"

I bowed. Lightening lit up the arena.

"Master Ryu," I said respectfully, "this is Kasumi's duty to go on in this competition and kill Raidou. She must become a run away…yes, it is a terrible burden but we are all ninjas are we not? Sometimes sacrifices must be made for the greater good. The path she must lead will be stained with blood and will constantly intercept with yours Hayabusa. Until one day, when peace returns, your paths will cross indefinitely."

"You speak as if you can see the future." Ryu responded suspiciously.

"I am your son." Was my answer, "let mom go. Believe me; you won't live to regret the decision."

Then I disappeared in a puff of white smoke leaving behind thin green leaves. The fiends had been unsuccessful in their plans to foul up the past and prevent the great Toshi Hayabusa's rise to power. Things would go the way they should…

The clock flashed 10:10.

Darn it, I thought getting out of bed, I missed Kaida's training session. It starts at five am and ends at seven am every single morning. Mines were in the evening; when I'm at my most alert. Last night when I fought against Shishio…guess that had been my training for the day or night. I got dressed and ran downstairs to see if Kentaro was still up for getting his butt whooped in Ninja Gaiden seven. The sofa was vacant. Huh, probably already left with Kaida. In the kitchen, Dad was on the phone talking to someone I'm guessing he knew very well just by the tone of his voice. It was incredibly cheerful and sort of weird. Weird because he was talking Chinese….or a really out there Japanese. I waved as I made my way to the back door. He nodded and continued on with his conversation. Just as I left, I heard my dad say something that sounded like a name…Lee? Jann Lee? Was Jann the first name or was it like Mr. Lee? My Chinese language knowledge is nearly zero. My skateboard was in its usual spot outside and I boarded it, casually zig zagging through my mother's massive garden. I used to always wonder how she took such good care of it all by herself, but now that I know she's a ninja, it all made sense. I spotted her in the carnation section and yelled a "Morning mom!" She smiled and greeted warmly "Good morning Toshi."

Summer was right around the corner and with that, summer vacation! Mom had told me last night we were all going to Japan the day after Kaida's graduation. Possibly forever…which would be awesome! Living in a real ninja village? Beats living in California any day! Wonder if you're allowed to skateboard or play video games in a ninja village? At that moment, I heard a rustling in the Tulip section. I stopped…someone was following me. Couldn't be the parents because they are way sneakier then this. Kaida too, she knows better then to, uh, rustle. I grinned, Kentaro. Speeding up my skateboard, I started zooming down through the garden nearing my highest speed. Shoot, you want to follow me? I'm going to give you one hell of a chase! Suddenly I sensed another presence. Ok, the other person must be Kaida. The family pool was coming into sight and I decided this would be the perfect spot for confrontation. Plus it was pretty hot today; a dip in the pool would be just what the doctor ordered. I awaited them at the edge of the pool and was surprised at who presented themselves first.

"I've got a score to settle with you Toshi." The blonde-haired women said sinisterly.

"Rachel, I'm sorry about not calling you back!" I pouted. Jillian gave me a funny look. (Haha! Made you think it was Rachel!)

"Who?" she asked confused.

"Nothing, just something random I was thinking about."

I gave Jillian a quick scan, this was the first time I've seen her in a bikini. Usually she was always wearing a t-shirt with a hooded sweat jacket. Now Jillian was sporting a sky blue bra with matching bottoms. It was not very modest. I saw her cheeks flush.

"Quit checking me out Karate hater!" she said trying to sound angry.

"Oh, so that's what this is about." I realized, "you're gonna fight me?"

"Yes and I promise you will find this quite unpleasant."

"Bring it baby!"

We assumed our fighting stances and I made the first move. A quick right but Jillian caught it, flipped me over (Darn, she doesn't even look that strong!), and punched me in the head.

"Wuss!" she taunted while backing up.

"So what, one lousy counter!" I yelled in frustration and slight embarrassment. I removed my shirt to show off my six pack. Her brown eyes widened, causing me to grin. Hey, Jillian wanted to fight me in a bikini, I'll fight her shirtless. "Let's see you counter me again!"

I threw a whole lot of random combos at her that she blocked but before I knew it, I had my back turned to her. Huh? What the-did she counter me again? I got bombarded with a ton of what felt like kicks to the backside. Right before I teleported, I felt Jillian smack my butt! I re-appeared behind her, blushing fiercely.

"Hey, no sexually harassing the opponent!" I yelled. Though it had been a slight turn on…I wonder how hot Jillian would look with a giant scythe in her hand.

"No I wasn't, I was simply finishing a basic combo!" she grinned naughtily, "Now lets get back to fighting!"

I stayed on the offensive, making sure to watch out for any counter attempt. Jillian stuck to mostly blocking for awhile. I should've known that during this time she was analyzing my fighting style. But I was feeling super confident; I finally wasn't getting my butt kicked. That changed in a flash when Jillian started fighting back. If I went high, I got kicked low. Hard. Seriously, Jillian was a lot stronger then her lithe frame would suggest. So karate's true power lied in strength and precision. Mine was speed and…lots of teleporting. Jillian's face became red after a few minutes of punching and kicking the air.

"Stop being cheap! Fight me like a man!" she exclaimed thoroughly annoyed.

"No, I'm fighting you like a ninja," I responded smugly, looking at her face to face. Jillian was about to grab me so she could toss me into the pool but I had other plans. I pushed her away and kicked the blonde high up into the air.

"Toshi!!" she screamed as I teleported up to her. With hands securely wrapped around her waist, down into the pool we went. I surfaced and climbed out of the pool while an angry Jillian soon followed after.

"Just wait until I get my black belt!" she warned. Then after a second's pause, added, "Or when Dustin comes to visit."

"Who's Dustin?"

"My karate teacher's son. He's also a ninja."

"What?! A ninja that studies karate?"

"Yea and he can do that annoying teleport trick too."

"I smell a challenge!" I said standing up with my hands on my hips. "Tell him to bring his A-game."

"He'll be here in about three weeks, right before us Senior's graduation." Jillian continued walking away towards the garden, "Oh and Dustin always brings his A-game."

Right before I could say something else, Jillian and Kaida both charged at me. Crap! I forgot about my sister! I couldn't teleport in time and into the pool I went. Jillian grabbed me around the neck while Kaida pounded me with hard punches to the gut.

"This is for spying on my date last night!" Kaida exclaimed. I saw Kentaro sit down in one of the beach chairs laughing his head off at the girl's double team against me. Once they finished having their way with me (ooooh, wrong choice of words…), I was left feeling about as sore as last night after Shishio's beating. I crawled out of the pool defeated muttering "That was sooooo not fair."

"You weren't being fair to Jillian by teleporting to death!" my sister replied. I glared at her.

"Besides, aren't you a ninja? I thought they were supposed to be able to fight large groups of people with ease." Kentaro added, also earning a glare. I swallowed my pride.

"Look, I'm not that good yet, ok? I admit it."

"Awwwww, but I'm sure you will be!" Jillian cooed squeezing my cheeks. I playfully pushed her hand away and stood up.

"Hey, who's up for a pool game?"

"Whatcha had in mind little bro?" Kaida asked while lazily floating atop the crystal blue water. I couldn't help but notice Kentaro seriously checking out my sister, who was sporting a fairly modest pink bikini that had hearts all over it. Soon, my attention returned to the task at hand. I ran over to where we kept all of the flotation devices and started tossing them into the pool. Kaida quickly caught on, setting the brightly colored floats side by side until they created a border that split the pool in half.

"Alright Jillian, this time we're gonna fight for real. And I promise not to teleport this time." I said, bowing to show my sincerity. She nodded. "First one knocked into the pool loses."

….

Kasumi returned to the well air-conditioned house for something to quench her thirst. Her husband was chatting on the phone…which is very unlike him. Ryu noticed her suspicious look and wrapped things up with who ever was on the other end.

"Something wrong my love?" he asked after hanging up. She smiled, relishing the 'my love'.

"Not really…but I just found it strange that you were, uh-"

"-Having a phone conversation. I know but they were old friends. Do you remember last night when I told you we should sell the house?"

Kasumi reflected and did recall Ryu mentioning it after she had finished telling Toshi about their tragic past. She then had crawled into bed, believing Ryu had fallen asleep but the second her head hit the pillow, the super ninja quickly turned to her.

"Did you tell Toshi?" he asked.

"Yea." She had replied sadly. Thinking about those times always filled her entire body with sorrow. He brought her into a strong embrace as Kasumi fought back the tears. After a few minutes, she felt him lay a gentle kiss on her forehead.

"We should sell our home." He said simply. She looked up into his beautiful green eyes.

"What? Why?" Kasumi already knew it was a silly question to ask. The last battle with Doatec had lasted an entire decade; there was no telling how long this one was going to take… especially with all the chaos going on in the ninja village's. Everyone had to be united in this fight or else we would all fall, one by one. Ryu smiled.

"I would hate for your garden to die in your absence. So, is this ok with you?"

Kasumi yawned a "Yes, that's fine," before falling asleep in his arms…

"So I'm guessing these old friends are who you had in mind to sell the house too all along?" Kasumi accused. This wouldn't be the first time Ryu had been two steps ahead of her. He hadn't told her about the Hajin-mon paying him a total of six visits before the previous night's attack on the children. Ryu did explain himself, telling her he had taught them enough Ninjustu to survive the ordeal.

"Though I did not expect them to actually attack our children…" He added angrily. Kasumi agreed with him, that was going a bit too far. So by what she figured, Ryu been planning on moving the family sometime after the Hajin-mon's third visit to his store. He was the store manager of a gaming shop, claiming the ninjas would never suspect him of working in a place like that. An antique shop would've been super obvious. He gazed at Kasumi thoughtfully.

"I'm sorry; I should keep you more informed about these things." Ryu apologized, "but yes, they've just now been able to come view the house. They'll be here next weekend."

"Who are they?"

"It's a surprise."

"Ryu! You just finished saying your going to keep me informed!"

"About the dangerous stuff; Not the fun…"

Kasumi was about to say something else when the phone rang again. He quickly grabbed the phone and giving his wife of eighteen years a wink, disappeared out of the room in whirl of green leaves. _Seriously, that man can be so secretive, _she thought to herself. But no matter what, Kasumi would always trust Ryu with all her being.

_Nineteen years ago…_

Kasumi couldn't believe it; Ryu had promised her he would give up the ninja way of life with her. And when a Hayabusa makes a promise, it is kept. Ryu had plenty of money saved from his store's profits and winnings of the several Dead or Alive tournaments he won so it wasn't hard for them to purchase a small house. To Kasumi's slight disappointment, Ryu made sure the house had two bedrooms.

"We should be safe here for now." He told her once they settled in. At first, Ryu spent a lot of time with Kasumi, helping her with various tasks around the house. Cooking, cleaning, he even assisted in her small flower garden. She was constantly curious but always too afraid to ask him if he was sad about his decision to become a normal citizen. Instead, Kasumi would gaze at his handsome face and gorgeous green eyes for clues. If Ryu was sad, he hid it well. After a good three months of the simple life, Ryu started going on day long fishing trips. This thoroughly worried Kasumi because she felt it was her fault he seeked refuge away from home. _I'm so boring…but what can I do to keep him here with me? _One thought crossed her mind but quickly discarded it. She didn't think Ryu would be interested in her that way, would he? All of the other women Kasumi had made close friends with during the Dead or alive tournaments claimed Ryu had a huge crush on her. She wished it but never believed it. They didn't understand the only reason Hayabusa hung around her so much was because of his pledge to her brother Hayate to protect her. Even when he had to protect her from Hayate. Ryu nearly died for Kasumi…so maybe, maybe he might love her. The poor red-haired woman sighed loudly in frustration. She was unsure of what to do, should she try taking that next step with Ryu? _It's worth a try. _So Kasumi began wearing tighter, more revealing outfits whenever Ryu was home. He offered some curious looks to the new change in wardrobe but he still went on those darn fishing trips. Now they lasted for two days. _It's getting worst_, Kasumi thought bitterly to herself. Maybe she needed to be more aggressive about her desire to want him home.

So one fateful night, Ryu came in looking suspiciously beat for someone who simply went fishing. Kasumi stood in front of the door leading to his bedroom wearing a long pink robe with a lightly transparent pink night gown hidden underneath. Her arms were crossed in front of her. Ryu knew he was in trouble; it had been three days this time.

"I did not mean to worry you." He said keeping his face and voice impassive. "It's just that-"

Kasumi placed a finger on his lips to silence him. He looked at her, surprised.

"No excuses, I just want you here with me from now on Ryu!" She asserted. Ryu's green eyes widened even more by the woman's sudden boldness.

"Kasumi? You're acting strangely…"

"I'm simply telling you that, that I don't mind these fishing trips, if that's what they really are, lasting a couple of hours. But days, I don't like it one bit and-and…" Her voice started cracking, the look Ryu was giving her broke her confidence.

"Then what are you accusing me of? Lying?" he asked, a hint of anger in his voice. Or was it annoyance? She suddenly found interest in her hair and started twirling it nervously. She didn't mean to accuse him of anything, she just wanted him home. Ryu took his hand and lifted Kasumi's face up so he could gaze into those large hazel eyes. He could sense a sudden change in her heartbeat…was Kasumi scared?

"I'll be sure to come home on time from now on." He assured her smiling. But Kasumi caught something in his eyes Ryu had tried to keep hidden: guilt. It was there for a split second, right before Ryu decided to smile. "Goodnight Kasumi." He gently tried to move her aside but the hazel eyed beauty refused to budge. Her heartbeat was still rapid.

"I'm not finished yet…" her voice trailed off. Ryu searched his mind to find a solution. Something was obviously on the woman's mind but she was too scared to tell him. He started thinking back to when Kasumi's behavior began to change…duh! Those few conversations he had with Zack during the tournament ended up proving useful…

_Zack, " Trust me 'busa-man, when a women starts going out of her way to look good…I'm talking a major change in appearance for the sexier, she's sweatin you!"_

_Ryu, "Sweatin?"_

_Zack, "Huh? Oh, forgot who I was talking too. Sweatin' means a gal really gotta thing for ya. Like Kasumi has a thing for you, she's sweatin her some of you bad…"_

_Ryu, "Your words are confusing. Besides, I need to meditate so your immediate absence would be much appreciated."_

_Zack, "Suit yourself ninja man, but I'm telling you, if a woman starts actin funny, a kiss and a wild night should straighten her up!"_

_As he left, Hayate entered and gave Ryu a strange look._

_Hayate, "What was Zack talking about?"_

_Ryu, "Not sure really, I think he was giving me woman advice…"_

_Hayate, laughs a bit, "Well, you never very good with the ladies…"_

"Hayabusa-san, I..um-"

He kissed her on the forehead and her heartbeat increased even more. Her skin against his lips sent a chill down his spine. This was a new feeling, he liked it. A lot. He kissed the bridge of her nose, then her nose, and finally, her lips. Ryu felt her melt in his arms, with Kasumi happier then she been in a long time. But for Ryu, the guilt was beginning to creep in. He opened his bedroom door with Kasumi still in his arms and for the first time, they fell asleep in the same bed. Ryu wanted so badly to have done more then just sleep that night but his conciseness was so just so damn heavy.

The next morning, Kasumi found herself all alone in Ryu's bedroom. She felt like a complete failure…he had finally run away for good. That had been a pity kiss, no matter how amazing it felt. _No Kasumi, no! _She yelled inside, _Ryu does have feelings for you! Why, he may have left to pick up a gift for you or something…yes, he would come back. _She started sobbing violently. Who was she kidding? He didn't touch her last night, heck, he didn't even try! Kasumi made up in her mind to face the awful truth she would have to live the rest of her days out alone. The stars, the fortune tellers, the cards …they all lied. They told her she was going to find true love and live her life in eternal bliss after surpassing many obstacles. Well, Doatec was finally destroyed and the clan was no longer after her. What other obstacles were there? She cried herself back to sleep.

Ryu returned to the small house knowing it was time to tell Kasumi the truth. It was time to tell her that he had continued his ninja ways but all to protect her. He was forced to battle against two clans. The Hajin-mon because Ayane refused to give up the hunt for Kasumi and the Black spider clan who was in full support of her; this was an ample excuse to continue their quest for his head. The Hayabusa clan and the Black spider clan were centuries old enemies so this didn't come as much of a surprise to the super ninja. He wanted to live in peace with Kasumi but if that were to be, they'd have to leave Japan. Things were getting way too out of hand. Ryu held the plane tickets in his hand as he opened the door. What he saw was one of the most depressing sights he's ever seen…and this ninja dealt with death and destruction on a daily basis. Kasumi was sitting on the small sofa with tissues surrounding her. He quickly ran over to her, held Kasumi close, and confessed everything: Confessed that she had right not to believe him about going on "fishing" trips and about Ayane, the Black spider clan, how he'd switch from his ninja garbs to his casual clothes upon returning home, washing away the blood on his weapons and himself at the antique shop's hidden living quarters…all to try to keep her safe and blind to the ongoing chaos still ensuing.

"Oh Ryu! You should've told me and I would've understood." She argued.

"I thought it would be best not to discuss anything ninja with you, since you wanted to turn your back on it."

"You thought wrong!! Oh-no, I'm so sorry Hayabusa-san. I shouldn't have snapped like that…I'm a wreck! I don't deserve your kindness, I don't!"

Ryu was eventually able to calm her down. He ran his fingers through Kasumi's long red hair.

"I recognize my mistake, "he explained, "and now I wish to start over, with a clean slate. I broke my promise to you, something I am highly ashamed of doing. So I will promise you again-"

"No Hayabusa-san! You didn't break your promise. You came back, so you're still trying. I am the one who broke a promise. I was sad and I promised not to be."

"Because of me."

"…"

"Kasumi, will you go to America with me? It's the perfect place to hide being that the country is so large."

"Yes, I'll go anywhere with you."

Kasumi smiled. Ryu smiled.

"And now, I would like to finish something I started last night…"

….

Kasumi admired the photos sitting on the dresser in their bedroom. The move to America was the best thing that could've happened to them. Two months after they moved to California, Ryu proposed to her in the same restaurant that had become Kyoto in Bloom. Their wedding was a very small one…well, just them and a priest. But it didn't matter to her; she finally married her true love. The stars, the fortune teller, the cards, they had all been right. Ryu still wanted to go on fishing trips but only this time, he invited Kasumi to come along. Something about being outdoors brought out a more affectionate side of Ryu and it wasn't long before she was pregnant with Kaida. They bought a very large house: Six bedrooms, five baths, and a backyard spanning at least five miles. Ryu combined two bedrooms and transformed it into a dojo so he could keep his fighting skills sharp. Kasumi had turned the third one into the babies play room, opting to keep the crib next to their bed. She found so many wonderful memories in the years when the children were growing up. Ryu changing a baby's diaper? She giggled quietly to herself, it was still funny. Then the time she taught him to speak baby…even funnier! He had turned out to be a phenomenal father.

"Kasumi?" His familiar voice beckoned. Kasumi put down the family portrait and turned to him. "You know the, uh, family I said I sold the house to were coming next weekend?"

"Yes, the one you refuse to reveal the name of to me." She said teasingly.

"Wait no more, they decided to drop by today."

She heard the doorbell ring…


	11. Chapter 11: A passionate relationship

"Wait! The house is a mess and-"

Ryu was already downstairs getting ready to welcome the mystery guests into their home. Kasumi raced to the stairs and teleported the rest of the way in hopes she could stop him but it was too late, the front door was wide open.

"Um, hello!" Kasumi greeted bowing, sounding a bit out of breath.

"Kasumi!!" Leifang exclaimed excitedly, "oh my gosh! Finally Jann, a surprise that was actually worth surprising me with!" she added with a wink towards her husband while giving Kasumi a side hug. A young baby girl, who looked exactly like her mother, occupied her right arm. The baby couldn't be more then a little over two year's old.

"Leifang!! It's so wonderful to see you again after all these years!!"

"Hi-hi!" the baby girl also greeted.

"Yes, that's Kasumi Huan yue, can you say Kasumi?"

"Ka-tum-meeeee!"

"Nice to meet you too Huan yue," Kasumi cooed, lightly tickling the girl's belly with her index finger. Huan yue giggled.

"Alright everybody, introduce yourselves," Jann lee directed as each child entered the house bowing.

"Dewei, nice to make your acquaintances." He was a young boy who looked fourteen with long black hair and glasses.

"Jie jang, hello." Another boy, probably twelve, with light brown hair that was cut fairly short.

"Jun le, tis a pleasure!" Again, a male child with dark brown hair pulled back and flattened neatly. He appeared about eleven.

"Jake, um…_Oseo_? Yeah, _Oeso_!" Greeted a bit of a geeky looking boy with black hair; he sported a side swept bang and large glasses. He looked fifteen.

"Zhi, thank you for welcoming us to your home." He appeared to be the eldest male child, appearing to be sixteen. Zhi looked almost exactly like Jann lee!

"Ty, cool place." He definitely was Jie jang's twin brother, only his hair was two toned with blonde and spiky.

"Tilo, hi." waved the youngest boy child, appearing to be nine or ten. He had messy looking medium brown hair.

"Lina, Cantonese nei ho." The eldest female child in the family; who had to be seventeen. She closely resembled her mother, sporting Lei fang's old ponytail style.

"It's very nice to meet you all, your family is so beautiful and well mannered," Kasumi complimented.

"You forgot to add _large," _Ryu added in a whisper; coming from behind the door. She gently nudged him as Leifang stared at them with a pout. Jann lee shook his head knowing exactly what was on the woman's mind._ Here it comes…_

"You two got married and didn't invite me to the wedding!! You should've called, I'm a huge romantic! I absolutely love weddings, I've actually got a scrapbook of all my friend's weddings, you have got to let me get some copies of your pics!"

"Hey Ryu? Where's that dojo you were telling me about over the phone? Now would be an excellent time to show me." Jann lee said quickly grabbing Ryu by the arm.

"So, do you have any kids? No wait, I mean how many do you have?" Leifang continued, ignoring the two men who were making their exit. Kasumi giggled.

"Only two, a girl and a boy." She smiled.

"I must have some pictures! Um, where are they? Lina, hold your sister for me." Leifang then scanned the room with a large digital camera in hand.

"Their all outside playing around the pool area with friends."

"You've got a pool!?" several of Leifang's children exclaimed excitedly. Kasumi nodded and now all of the kids were smiling at their mother.

"Is it ok if they join?" Leifang asked Kasumi who, of course, said yes. "Alright, you heard Kasumi, go get your swim wear and have fun."

They all ran out of the house like mad men except the eldest girl Lina, but that was because she was holding her baby sister Huan yue. Leifang sighed.

"That'll keep them busy; it's so hard to keep eleven kids occupied!"

"Eleven? I only recall nine."

"Oh, sorry, I have two other sons but their away in college now. It feels like just yesterday they were here with us."

"I've just got to ask…why so many?"

"What? Kids? Hehe, Jann lee and I fight a lot."

"Uh-huh."

"And then we make-up."

Kasumi had a look of confusion on her face.

"Have you and Ryu, I still can't believe you two finally got together, oh! But I digress. What was I talking about? Oh-yeah, have you and Ryu ever had a big argument about anything?"

"Not a real argument, maybe just a few minor disagreements from time to time…"

"Let's pretend you guys got into a huge argument about…um, Ryu calling you fat."

"He would never do that!"

"Pretending!"

"Oh."

"So yeah, he called you fat and it made you really mad and you called him ugly."

"That's awful!"

"Right! So you both yell and scream, maybe throw in a few punches. Sulk for a couple hours until you both feel really, really guilty about what just happened. You meet up in the bedroom and say your sorry while making sweet, sweet love between the sheets."

"Oooh! Now I get it." And in Kasumi's mind "_I think…"_

"Yeah, it definitely keeps our relationship interesting. Heck, sometimes I make up stuff to fight with him about. Like this one time, I spilled soy sauce all over the kitchen floor and left. When Jann lee went in, I quickly ran back in and yelled at him for spilling soy sauce all over my clean floor!"

"You're so wrong!"

"I know, it was sooo funny, his face was red and everything! That's how we got Huen yue."

"So there's an argument behind every child?"

"Yeah but enough about my dysfunctional relationship; lets get to your… non-dysfunctional one, like how you finally seduced the super ninja."

"I didn't seduce him…we fell in love."

Leifang grinned.

"I want all the details; starting from the very first romantic encounter."

"Well, that occurred about one year after the final DOA tournament, you know, the tenth one and-"

Just then, all the kids came back into the house in their swim gear. Kasumi led them to the kitchen and opened the back door.

"Keep walking straight down the garden and you will be at the pool in no time." She smiled.

They all yelled "thank you!" before departing. Leifang and Kasumi first opted to continue the conversation in the kitchen but Jann lee's battle cries could be heard loud and clear.

"Boy my husband has a big mouth!" Leifang muttered annoyed, "let's go back to the living room. Which is, by the way, absolutely gorgeous! The house is so sold."

Once they sat down, Leifang turned to Kasumi with a questioning expression on her face.

"Why exactly are you selling this beautiful home?"

"It's because we've been summoned to return to Japan to help prevent a major clan war. DOATEC's doing, of course, to keep us ninja busy from the true threat."

"Oh my, so it is true! I thought it was a rumor…this is- no, lets get back to happier things. Like you and Ryu…?"

…

Once Kasumi finished telling the story, Leifang had tears in her eyes.

"Aaaaawwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww!! That is the most romantic thing I've ever heard!"

Kasumi smiled for a second.

"So, what about you and Jann lee? You two used to act like you couldn't stand each other-!"

"We still can't," she giggled ", but I'm warning you Kasumi, it's not hardly as romantic as your story."

"Anything about two people falling in love is romantic Lei fang."

She leaned back on the sofa and sighed. "Well, it all started after the eighth Doa tournament when Jann lee won…"

_Twenty-two years ago_

"No, no, nooooo! Please tell me your joking Hitomi!" Leifang pleaded but the brunette shook her head.

"I'm sorry Lei, but Jann lee beat Ryu for the win. It was absolutely amazing, the battle raged on for over two hours! And in celebration, Jann lee's hosting a party at the club he works at. He said all the DOA participants' are invited and encouraged to come. "

"Not this one," Leifang muttered angrily rising from the hospital bed. She had suffered a minor concussion from her rival's famed Dragon kick hitting her at point blank range. The doctor's figured it a miracle it was only minor…It was possible the Chinese woman's skull could've been busted open! Hitomi pouted.

"So you're going to make me go all alone?"

"If you are really my friend Hitomi, you wouldn't be going at all!"

"You know, it's not very healthy to sulk around and be a sore loser. I've lost this competition ever since I got here but what do I do? Dust myself off, train some more, and jump right back into it."

"That's what I've been doing and I still can't defeat the bastard! Do you know how frustrating it is? To have that one person you just can't, grrrrrrr!! I hate him, I hate him!"

"Maybe that's why you can't defeat Jann lee."

"What?"

"I had the same problem when Ein and I went head to head. I wanted to defeat him so badly but I always lost. So I sat myself down to figure out what was wrong. My skills were as sharp as his, I knew all his moves, but there was this something that came up only when I knew one more blow would finish the job: That excitement of finally fulfilling that goal and the nervousness about being so close. The end result is me getting sloppy and punished with a brutal counter. In your case, it seems to be the Dragon kick."

Leifang nodded while holding her head. It was still pounding.

"So how did you finally defeat Ein?"

"We went on a little picnic and I made sure to pack all our favorite foods and brought some tea-"

"A picnic?"

"Yes, and we talked and chatted about random stuff. It was on that day I realized I had a bit of a crush on him. The strangest part of that was, once I admitted this to myself, I was able to really concentrate on my Karate. Thus, I defeated Ein, but not just once, multiple times!"

"So by realizing you had a crush on him, it helped you to clear your mind and focus on defeating him?"

"Yeah, sounds weird but it works, I no longer felt so anxious when I fought Ein, and I actually took my time like I usually do when facing strong opponents."

"But I don't have a crush on Jann lee."

"Sure Lei? It could be the source of your anxiousness."

"Completely and utterly sure."

"Then we should totally go to the party tonight so I can be sure you're sure you're, uh, sure."

The two young women laughed. "Alright Hitomi, I'll prove it!"

_Three hours later…_

Leifang and Hitomi arrived at the club around nine and were thoroughly surprised by what they saw. There was a line that stretched way down the street and around the corner full of people hoping to get in on the action. Apparently, all present were huge fans of the Jeet Kune do master. Leifang analyzed the many outfits worn by those in attendance: all outfits either had an embroidered dragon (mostly guys) or Jann lee in mid-air performing that damn Dragon kick! (Mostly women) Dozens of other shirts had him posing in several of his other battle stances but the Dragon kick was definitely the popular choice. Suddenly, Leifang wondered if was even a good idea for her to have come in the first place… Jann lee was everywhere! Heck, the crowd was even making those random bird noises Jann lee made when in the heat of battle!

"_I'm going to go insane!!"_ Leifang screamed inside while following Hitomi towards the back of the line.

"Hey, aren't you two DOA participants?" a large man yelled to the ladies.

"Uh, yes sir, Hitomi and Leifang!!" Hitomi answered at the top of her lungs. The crowd hushed up and turned to them. A whole bunch of guys started whistling at them.

"Make room!" The guard demanded; forcing about twelve people back to allow the two women to climb over the red rope. "All from DOA have top priority."

"Yay, we're in." Hitomi whispered before skipping into the building. Lei fang was about to follow when the guard stopped her.

"Hey!" She exclaimed, "what's' going on?"

"I just noticed your name is not on the list."

"How can that be? I was in the DOA tournament. Damn it! Where's Jann lee? Probably did this on purpose…JANN LEE!!"

The music inside the club stopped abruptly and a familiar face with spiky hair peeked outside from behind the red velvet curtain sealing the entrance way. He groaned.

"You Lei? I'm shocked, didn't think you would show up for _my_ victory party." Jann lee grinned arrogantly. _Yea, his stupid little victory party…_

Several people behind Leifang started screaming his name, causing the grin to grow even wider.

"Well I'm here so let me in!"

He gave her a quizzical look. "What'll happen if I do?"

"Nothing! Now let me in, it's cold out here and I'm not dressed for it!"

Jann lee's eyes checked the Chinese beauty out, closely observing every curve and patch of skin visible. Leifang was sporting a zip up black midriff that was very open around her chest area. He could just spy the top half of her yellow bra, more then likely a push-up because of the way her breasts "popped". A golden necklace with a figure of a phoenix grazed her abundant cleavage. Moving down her well toned waist was a black mini, mini skirt that rested several inches below the belly button. _Several_. Then continuing down along those long legs were golden open toed high heels. Jann lee smiled.

"Alright, you can come in but I'm warning you Leifang. Try _anything _and you are so outta here!"

"Okay, okay, got it, geez." She responded, pushing Jann lee out of her way with her hips. The party inside was wild and Leifang automatically saw some familiar faces. Tina was grinding her booty against Zack's lower body, much to his pleasure. Hitomi and Ein were the next couple but were dancing with class and decency! Brad Wong and his drinking buddy Ping (who looked similar to Brad but sported a low ponytail that ended halfway down his back. His hair was black with two white highlights down the middle.) were sitting at the bar doing what they always did…drink. They had both trained with the same master but with Brad mastering Zui Ba Xian Quan faster. Ping had joined the DOA tournament last year and ran into Brad at the Seaside market.

"Hey, is that you Brad?" Ping had asked and Brad nodded.

"Ping, it's been awhile!"

Now Ping nodded. "Whatcha been up ter man?"

"I've been entering these Doa tournaments."

"Oh, What for?"

"Something to do, ya know, you can win money at them?"

"How much?"

"Millions."

"That's a lot of liquor…we'd be set for life."

"Yup."

"Hey Brad?"

"Ping?"

"Let's enter together this time and win."

"Okay. By the way, there are super sexy women at the tournament too."

"Really?"

"Double D's everywhere."

"Man, I should've found you sooner!"

And they were inseparable afterwards, almost completely dominating the tag team division. Brad and Ping had one of the funniest tag team moves ever seen in the competition's history! For example, there was a match between the drunks and Hitomi who was working with Zack. Ping and Brad both wore matching hats. While Zack fought Ping, Ping whipped off his hat and placed it on Zack's head. The duo spun poor Zack around and around about five times before letting him go. On this occasion, Zack fell on the electrically charged ropes, knocking himself out. Hitomi was given the same treatment but she simply fell over. Yet, when faced with the ninja tag team of Hayate and Ayane, they were crushed with what could be labeled as a "perfect" or "greatest" . The ninjas simply weren't having it!Christie was also present with the two drunken fellows alongside Monica, who is the newest participant of the DOA tournament with her reason being she had invested some serious cash into Doatec and lost it. Somehow, the evil company tricked her into investing all of her money for a huge financial reward but poor Monica went completely broke instead. She came to the tournament, not to enter, but to find the person responsible for the trickery. They told her if she entered and won, all her money would be returned to her in cash ten-fold. Fortunately, Monica practiced the martial art of Tien Shan Pai as a child and mistakenly believed this competition would be a piece of cake. After a couple of matches, Monica realized just how tough actually winning this thing would be. Leifang was the one who dealt out her first DOA defeat. Monica was a highly attractive young woman, with caramel colored skin and shoulder-length dark brown hair with green eyes. For some unknown reason, Christie really took to her right off the bat. Had they been friends sometime in the past?

Looking back towards the dance floor, Leifang spotted Lisa getting her groove on with some guy wearing a Jann lee sleeve-less T. Further down was Bass but he wasn't dancing. He was glaring at his daughter who was still inappropriately dancing up against Zack… even more so then before. Leifang giggled quietly to herself, Rachel must be nearby. It was funny because when Rachel made her debut in the sixth tournament, she told everyone she was looking for our super ninja, Ryu Hayabusa. Her exact intentions on entering were never learned but everybody assumed it was because Rachel really, really liked Hayabusa and possibly winning this competition may have him look in her direction. Zack was the only exception. He blurted out that Rachel was a super sexier version of Tina (which earned him a serious back-handed slap from the Texan wrestler) and wanted her all to himself. From that moment on, Tina made Rachel her arch enemy and started flirting with Zack. Its funny how when Tina finally returns Zack's feelings; Zack is off trying to woo another woman! Leifang remembered eavesdropping on the guys while Zack was trying to convince Hayabusa to ask Kasumi out on a date so Rachel would go out with him. After a few, Jann lee had yelled, "Zack! Will you leave the man alone before he death drop's you?" Yes, death drop was Jann lee's new name for the _Izuna-oteshi_. Of everybody, Jann lee has suffered that move the most times (about thirty-two she believed?) Gazing upwards, Leifang caught sight of Rachel leaning over the balcony above the dance floor. She turned her head for a split second to talk to someone but Leifang couldn't see who. Probably Ryu... but then again, what would he be doing in a club?

"So now what are you gonna do?" Jann lee asked suspiciously eyeing her. Leifang turned to him with an annoyed look.

"Whatever I want, you're not my father!"

He rolled his eyes. "You've got complete access to the VIP room and a discount on everything on the menu." Then reluctantly added, "Have fun."

Leifang watched as her arch rival disappeared into the crowd. She stood there for a moment, _what am I gonna do…?_ It wasn't long before an attractive man came up to her and asked if she wanted to dance. She accepted thinking "_Finally, someone without Jann lee merchandise!" _Leifang led the man deep into the crowd until she spotted Jann lee chatting it up with three college age looking women.

"So what's your name!?" she yelled over the pounding music. Leifang eye's quickly glanced over to where Jann lee was. He hadn't heard her. The guy she was talking to answered but the music drowned him out. "COULD YOU REPEAT THAT?!" She nearly screamed. Now Jann lee's head turned. Right before the man could answer, Leifang started pushing her body up against his.

"Whoa oh, go Leifang!" Lisa clapped moving her dance partner to their location so they could jam side by side. Leifang usually didn't believe in this sort of "dirty" dancing but it was the only way to bug the crap out of Jann lee. She knew good and well he found her attractive by the way he had checked her out earlier…and the jealous look Jann lee was currently sporting. She moved her body very erotically and rhythmically, causing people to stop dancing and watch her! Whistles and cheers could be heard all around. Leifang was in the groove, with eyes closed, letting the beat take control.

"Leifang! Leifang!" she heard Hitomi yelling and soon the entire crowd began chanting her name. She decided to open her eyes for a second to survey the scene around and above: In the crowd were Tina, Zack, Lisa, Hitomi, Ein, Brad, Ping, Monica, Christie, Bass, and Jann lee (looking thoroughly pissed!) Her nameless date was smiling from ear to ear. Up above at the two balconies's revealed: Rachel, Ryu (holy crap, he was here!), Kasumi, Ayane, Kokoro, Elliot, Helena, Bayman, and Leon (huh, everyone actually did show up!). Kasumi and Kokoro waved to her as Leifang continued her dance. Once the song was over, Leifang let out her sexiest sigh.

"Well I'm thirsty."

She didn't have to walk to the bar area. Instead, Leifang walked upstairs to the VIP lounge with four waiters carrying over a hundred drinks different people had bought for her. The guard blocked her "date's" way saying the VIP lounge was only for DOA competitors. Leifang waved goodbye to the poor lad, she was done with him. The lounge was a breath of fresh air from the horribly crowded dance floor. Kasumi was the first to wave to her so Leifang sat down next to the red-haired Kunoichi who was all smiles. She was sitting at the end of a large red sofa with Ryu standing against a wall adjacent to her. Rachel was standing to the left of Ryu, leaning over the balcony. Every now and then she would peer over at Ryu as if wishing he'd dance with her…or something along those lines. As soon as the waiters finished bringing up all the drinks, all the other DOA participants came flying up the stairs.

"Hey, let me help you with some of those." Brad said gulping down about four glasses. Ping followed suit.

"Go right ahead, everyone have a drink!" Leifang announced feeling incredibly generous.

"Don't mind if I do!" Tina quickly grabbed a glass full of blue liquid. "Oh god, that hit the spot!"

"Ooh, this one has strawberries in it!" Kasumi squealed excitedly grabbing a glass. Ryu shook his head.

"Put it down."

"Why? She's of age." Leifang interfered.

"Kasumi has never consumed alcohol before and given our current situation-," He glared over at Ein, who glared back in return, "-it wouldn't be safe."

"I'll just pick out the strawberries…is that ok?" Kasumi asked him. This time, Ryu nodded. Leifang found this slightly annoying and whispered in Kasumi's ear-

"You know, you do have a mind of your own."

Ryu grunted. He heard her.

"Hayabusa-san's just looking out for me. He knows more about this stuff then I do." Kasumi explained calmly before popping a strawberry into her mouth. She couldn't understand the relationship between those two: Half the time, Ryu acted more like her father then anything. Then there were those other times… Leifang did a quick scan of the room to see if Jann was there yet. Nope. She sighed and picked up a random drink and took a sip. _Mmmmm…this is delicious!_ Before Leifang knew it, she had drunken nearly five glasses of the sweet tasting yellow liquid. That's when Jann lee made his way upstairs to see how his rivals/ pals were doing.

"About time you-you got hurrr!!" Leifang slurred. "I would like ter make a toasted."

"A toast?" He corrected. She rolled her eyes.

"Whatever, yea, that. Come one yall, let's hold up a glass!"

All, even Ryu, held up a glass.

"I would like to congratulate all of the past winners and players in the Dead on Arrival-"

"Dead or alive." Jann lee corrected again.

"Geez, do you want to do this?"

"No, go ahead Lei." He chuckled, amused at how wasted she was.

"Okay, I'm congratuwating all who've won and been in the Dead _or Alive _tourney, uh, ment and this yerr's winner Jann fui and next yerr's winner. Me! Let's toasty!"

Several glasses clanged and all in attendance gulped down the drinks in their hands…well, except Ryu, Kasumi, and Jann lee. Leifang suddenly felt an incontrollable need to get up and dance.

"I'll-I'll be back , I wanna dance!"

She found the VIP lounge to be unsatisfactory but couldn't figure out where the stairs were that led down to the dance floor. So she wondered around, bumping into random people (Leifang's eye sight was incredibly blurry at this point) until finally hitting a door. Out of curiosity, she went right on in (not locked, whoo hoo!) and the room instantly reminded her of the secret room on New Zack's island where she had pole-danced.

"Purrr-fffeecct!"

All Leifang remembered before totally blanking out was climbing up on stage and grabbing on to the pole.

…

"So, what are you two ladies talking about?" Jann lee interrupted while taking a seat in Ryu' s favorite chair. Ryu was not pleased but since Jann was a guest, he let it go and opted to sitting next to Kasumi on the sofa.

"Well, if you must know, Kasumi and I were describing how our rivalries and friendship's blossomed into love in vivid detail."

"How detailed?" Ryu inquired, turning to his wife suspiciously.

"Oh, Kasumi told me all about your favorite sexual positions and-," Leifang burst out laughing as Ryu's face turned a bright red. "I'm just joking! I'm just joking!"

"Whoa, I was about to say, what did we miss!?" Jann lee added chuckling. Ryu grunted, thoroughly annoyed. Kasumi leaned her head against his arm.

"Changing the subject, Ryu? Did you give my husband a good butt whooping just now?" Leifang asked.

"Hey!!" Jann lee exclaimed, not thrilled it was his turn to be called out. Ryu grinned and Leifang smiled back.

"I though so."

"Anyway, I heard something about you wanting to dance?" Jann lee quickly threw out.

"Yea, I was telling Kasumi about the fun we had at the club you used to work at…and the party you threw after the eighth tournament…"

"Things were just starting to get good!" Kasumi added.

"Did you already past the part about the toasty?" he wondered. Leifang nodded.

"I'm on the part when I did a drunken strip tease because all I remember is being fully clothed when I got in and suddenly when I sober up, I'm in my bra and panties!"

"That was quite a night…" Jann lee sighed. "wi-"

"Sshh! don't ruin the rest of the story for them! Remember, they had left before we did which by the way, why did yall?"

"With everybody becoming drunk, we thought it best to leave before things got rowdy." Ryu explained.

"Says the ninja famed for taking out one-thousand men in a single blow," Jann lee muttered. Ryu shot him a look. "I'm just sayin…"

"Alright, let me get back to the story now!"

…

When Leifang regained the use of her senses, she was down to her bra and panties and with a spectator sitting in the audience. Jann lee of course. Leifang gripped the pole and continued dancing erotically, thoroughly enjoying the lust she was building deep within her rival's body. Her plan was to seduce him and then leave him hanging right before things went to the infamous"Place of no return." Oh, how much pain Jann lee would be left in! Leifang could hear it now while she felt her own body up…Jann lee screaming her name in pure agony and cursing the day of her birth. Once the excitement reached its boiling point, Leifang leapt off the stage while still trying to pretend to be drunk and slowly made her way towards him. Jann lee held his breath as she began performing a lap dance. When he reached for her, Leifang quickly slapped his hand.

"No touchy!" she scolded, though not really meaning it. Jann lee grew restless and when Leifang straddled him, the temptation was too great. He quickly drew her in for a deep, deep kiss. Leifang was not expecting it to feel so-so _good. _At least three minutes passed before their lips parted. Both mouthed the word "wow" before their lips met once more for another three minutes. Then Jann lee picked Leifang up and carried her over to a purple sofa (was it purple? The room was so dimly lit…). He gently laid her down and Leifang felt her body weakening at his touch.

"_Oh my god! Hitomi may have been right! Maybe I do have the hot's for this guy." _

He removed his shirt to reveal his sculpted abs and went to work on removing her bra.

"_No, I can't let this happen. He's still my rival, I haven't defeated him yet. I-"_

His hands traveled up and down her body, causing her to moan.

"_But it feels so right!"_

His lips met her hers before moving down to her neck, her shoulders, her…

"_No! No! No! This is wrong! I can't! I must break away somehow!" _

She felt his fingers teasing her down below.

"_There's nothing I can do! My mind might be saying no but my body is screaming yes!"_

"Jann lee…"

"_I'll surrender to you just this one time…" _

"Leifang…"

"Aren't you glad I came…?"

"Yes…"

_"Who am I kidding? I won't, I'm sticking to my original plan!"_

"Jann?"

"Mmm?"

"Can I get on top?"

"Sure…anything you want…"

"_I can't submit to you…not yet…"_

As soon as Jann lee released his firm grip on her, Leifang leapt off the sofa and located her clothes on the far side of the room.

"Lei! Lei!!" Jann lee screamed getting up, but tripped on his pants. This was just enough time for Leifang to throw on her clothes and jet out the door. "DAMN YOU LEIFANG!!"

….

"Ouch." Ryu simply commented.

"Well that definitely explains why at the ninth tournament you two were so hostile." Kasumi added. "I mean with all the pranks and stuff."

"Yeah but it was that year when we finally realized how much chemistry and passion was really between us." Jann lee explained remembering that faithful battle.

…

It was a close match, the two being scheduled to battle it out in the Doatec wrestling ring. Both competitors had been pushed to the brink of their abilities.

"I will not let you defeat me again! Tonight is my night!" Leifang screamed defiantly, shoving Jann's body into the electrified ropes. He wasn't sure how much more pain his body could take. He tried to high kick her to throw the Tai Ji princess off her feet but instead, she countered and stomped his abdomen. He cried out in pain and rolled out of harm's way.

"No, I can not lose to you." Jann lee replied sternly. "I've always prevailed over you. For eight straight years I've always prevailed over you, what makes you think this time will be different?"

She huffed in frustration at the truth thrown into her face and went for the punch. This time, Jann lee countered her and then grabbed her head to slam her face into the unforgiving ground.

"Damn you!!" she rose up and was barraged with punch after brutal punch until she fell to the ground. Leifang didn't stir.

"Like I had said, I always prevail…"

"Not this time…" she muttered, rising to her feet as if rising from the dead. _What the f- that should've been a KO!! Alright, _it's_ time for the Dragon Kick. _Jann lee readied himself for the deadly move. Leifang leaned up against the ropes to regain her balance. The room was spinning but she was still able to hear that cry…the cry she heard so many years ago when Leifang battled that group of thugs. How close to death she had been and if wasn't for him… Leifang ducked and rolled. Jann lee didn't have enough time to stop.

ZZZZZZzzzzzttttttTTTTT!!

An unknown amount of bolts surged through the man's body. He rebounded off the ropes, completely vulnerable to an attack form his opponent with a one-hundred percent chance he was not going to be able to block nor counter.

"_One more blow and I will finally defeat him!" _she thought smiling, _"I have to make it a good one…"_ But Jann lee looked so broken, so weak. She had never seen him this way before.

A fatal mistake, Leifang paused. Jann lee turned on a dime and delivered a high kick just as Leifang was about to perform one of her own.

WHAM!!

The crowd went silent as they looked down upon the two fallen competitors, wondering who would rise first to pick up the win. Neither moved.

"Double KO!!"

_Later on that same night…_

Leifang made her way back to the wrestling ring with mixed emotions. No, she hadn't defeated him but she did prove she was…equal.

"We are equal." Leifang repeated aloud to help her accept this fact. All those years of training so she could beat him and here she is, equal. The word echoed through out her mind, it was all the Tai ji Quan genius could think about.

"Yo."

She froze.

"Sorry…did I scare you?"

It was Jann lee. Leifang relaxed.

"Just a little." Was all she was willing to admit.

"So you finally did it." He said sitting down on the edge of the ring next to her. Leifang shook her head.

"No, we tied."

"But wasn't your goal to exist in the same world as me? I recall you saying this during the second tournament."

"…"

"Now you do Leifang. I accept you as a worthy opponent and also, I'd like for us to be, maybe…"

"What?"

"More."

Silence.

"I-," Jann lee paused. Leifang grabbed his shirt and pulled him in for a kiss.

"Now we are Jann lee." The woman grinned. "but that doesn't mean I'm going to give up on my other dream of actually defeating you!"

"Sorry babe, a tie is all your getting."

"Oh! You arrogant bastard!!"

"You hypercompetitive bitch!!"

"I hate you!!"

"I hate you more!!"

"You want to take this outside!?"

"Hell! I want to take this to the bedroom!!"

"What?!"

"Awwww, not up for the challenge?"

"You dare-lets go!!"

…

"And that's pretty much our relationship up to this point." Jann lee summed up. Leifang walked over to the chair he was lounging in and sat on his lap.

"And it will always be." She added sweetly, giving him a soft kiss. Kasumi and Ryu smiled, seeing their friends had found happiness just like them.

"This house is way to quiet with our kids being here." Jann lee commented after a moment's pause.

"Their outside playing in the pool." Leifang explained laying her head against his chest.

"How far's the pool? Two, four, six feet away? Still way too quiet…something's gotta be up!"

"To be honest, they have been out for awhile." Ryu agreed gazing at the clock. It read six in the evening." Maybe we should go investigate…"

_This was a fun chapter to write, the Jann lee and Leifang pairing is my second favorite ( After Ryu and Kasumi). Sorry for taking so long to update but I put a lot of thought into this one. Hope you enjoyed reading it and please more reviews! Let me know how I'm doing, thx : )_


	12. Chapter 12: Pool party

_Awwww, no one reviewed my last chapter but (sighs) its ok. I thank those who have reviewed my other chapters and those who haven't, thank you for reading : ) _

...

This pool party just got a whole lot crazier. And trust me; it was already crazy with arms, legs, bikinis, and ponytails flying everywhere! Toshi had started a game where the last person standing a top a float won. Let's see, we've got four martial artists who have a strong urge to prove their fighting style superior…plus bragging rights are always fun to have. Add all that up and you have some serious battles! Once it was all said and done, the score had been (total of seventy-three rounds):

Toshi- 17

Jillian- 15

Kaida- 22

Moi- 37…fine…19…but Kaida was distracting me in that teeny weenie, pink with lots of hearts bikini! Jillian wasn't half bad either...

Toshi teased us seniors about being old when we all decided to rest a little. I said if he kept it up, all of us would put his junior ass in its place. Toshi shrugged it off and started performing random diving tricks. Fast forwarding to right now…

"Uh, holding a secret ninja family reunion?" I teasingly asked Kaida. She smiled back.

"If we are, it was a secret to me too."

At least ten kids came running and immediately diving into the pool. A mini tidal wave formed because of the speed these guys were going! Another girl holding a baby appeared from around the corner with a sour expression. I was curious, was that her baby sister or her baby? You just don't know anymore…

"Please excuse my brothers' impoliteness." She said bowing.

"Hey!! Mrs. Kasumi said we could get in the pool and we did!! What's so impolite about that?" one of the dudes cried out. I liked his hair, it was two toned with brown and blonde. At one time I had asked my mom if I could go two-toned. She sort of laughed and inquired what second hair color I would want. So I checked out my handsome self in the mirror and said "Nah, it'd take away from my natural hotness." I worried about my mother…and I really hoped she would be ok until we could rescue her. I was left under the false pretense that mom had an interview for this job at a high profile restaurant where they wanted her to play the piano while people dined. Apparently, the restaurant was way far away but were planning on buying Kyoto in bloom ( What is with that place constantly changing hands?) so mom could work closer to home. When I told Ryu and Kasumi that, they both wore a weird expression on their faces before nodding. Then under the blanket of darkness, the duo stole out into the night to investigate my story and proved it, well, false. She had been kidnapped and was being held hostage at DOATEC headquarters (Which, somehow, they seemed to have had no trouble in finding…?) Ryu had assured me that DOATEC's intentions were not to hurt my mother but force her to represent the company. _For now…_He had implied before heading off to bed.

"You didn't even introduce yourselves!" The Chinese girl snapped, whipping me back into reality. She turned to us smiling. "Well I'm Lina."

"Heellllloooo Lina." I greeted back and resulted in an eye roll from my girl Kaida and a slap on the shoulder by Jillian.

Lina turned her attention to the baby in her arms, "Tell them your name."

"Ka-tum-meeeee!!" she yelled giggling.

"Awwww, Kaida, she has your mummy's name!" I said causing them all to start laughing.

"This is my baby sister Huan yue," Lina said after everyone settled down. (Answered my earlier question.)

"How old is the wittle cutey?" Kaida cooed.

"She's going to be two in September."

" Awwww!! Oh, I'm Kaida and this here is Kentaro." She said squeezing my knee.

"Yea, their the couple I told you about this morning!" Jillian added. I looked over at her for a second, Goldilocks already knew Lina?

"You two look very good together." Lina complimented us.

"Why, your much too kind." I replied, draping an arm around Kaida's shoulders. She snuggled up against my chest. Ah, so long had I fantasized about one being with this girl. After dating nearly the school's entire female population, I found it berserk that asking Kaida out had been so troublesome for me. I found it easier to bug her to death, which I did but in my defense; it helped me build up enough confidence to finally pop the big question. Shoot, I was so confident; I had even gone in for the kiss. Oh what a kiss that had been…I definitely felt those chills. This was new to me, I've kissed many girls before Kaida but only her's had that-that _Magic. _I moved my arm down to her waist and tightened my grip. Her cheeks went pink for a second before her eyes traveled towards the pool.

"Oh-yeah, that's my lame brother Toshi over there in the pool." Kaida added after spying her brother eyeing Lina curiously. Or maybe I should've said checking out Lina and then being curious as to who she was. Toshi responded to his sister be sticking out his tongue and doing some sort of triple flip into the blue water below. Several "whoa, awesome!!" were echoed through-out the pool, including by two-toned, who was swimming towards one of the pool ladders. He climbed up and walked over to, uh-oh, Toshi's skateboard with a mischievous grin on his face.

"Cool, a skateboard!"

"Ty, leave that alone-!" Lina yelled but the boy had already boarded and was skating all around us and then around the pool. Toshi was no where to be seen. A puff of smoke mysteriously appeared above Ty's head and one pissed off Toshi came into view , grabbed the boy's shoulders firmly, flipped Ty off the board, and into the pool Ty went belly first! I winced, ouch, belly flop. Kaida slapped her forehead muttering "idiot!" At first, I thought she was talking about Ty but then I realized it was Toshi she was referring too. Only Jillian and I were supposed to know about their study of the ninja arts but now Toshi just revealed his teleporting abilities to total strangers!

"How did he do that? That just now!?" Lina asked getting up while Huan yue clapped. Lina gently sat the baby girl in the beach chair.

"What are you talking about Lina? Ya know what, whose hungry? I'll get snacks…Come on Toshi!" Kaida said in one breath. Toshi was already gone (probably teleported again) but when Kaida tried to run off, Lina did about two back flips before grabbing Kaida's wrist and twisting her arm behind the back. Kaida cried out in pain as Lina dragged her back to the pool area and then released, placing her hands on her hips.

"Excuse my rudeness, but I'm not sure if you heard my last question about how your brother just poofed himself like that."

"In order for my girlfriend to tell you that, you'll have to be interrogated by her parents." I explained, using my most serious tone. I could tell Lina thought I was joking.

"It's true because trust me Lina, I would've been told you!" Jillian added. Lina pouted knowing she wasn't getting any answers at the current moment. Then her face brightened.

"Would my parents already knowing yours help any?"

"What's their names?" Kaida asked.

"My father is Jann lee and my mother's name is Lei fang."

"Snap, yep!" I instantly recognized. Those two had the rivalry of the century! Funny how they ended up together after all the fussing and the pranks and the name calling…

"So can you tell me now? I can't stand being left in the dark!"

"They're NINJA!!" Jillian screamed jumping up and clapping. I liked the part when she bounced… "Toshi and Kaida can both teleport and everything. Though that teleport thing gets kinda old when in combat-"

"Ninja? Seriously Jill?" Lina repeated perplexed. Toshi re-appeared behind her in full ninja gear. He was dressed in complete black, covering every part of his body except his eyes and fingers. The sleeves were short and a bit droopy. Another shirt's sleeve took over and where it ended, open-finger gloves started. A cool, silver metal head piece adored his forehead and a black ninja scarf around his neck gently flapped in the cool breeze. Heck, the dude even had a sword hilt with what looked like a real sword inside. Lina spun around and gasped.

"You know too much little lady and for that, I must take your life!" Toshi threatened drawing the sword. Huh? Was that a real sword!!

"You took Papa's Dragon sword!! He is gonna kill you!!" Kaida yelled. "And I mean, really, kill you!! Like, dead!!"

"Relax sis, he's busy talking to this Chinese couple, he won't even notice its missing."

"Hello nimrod! Papa's a ninja; he'll sense its disappearance!"

"I'm a ninja too! So I can make him not sense the disappearance and still think its there cause…? Anyhow, back to the matter at hand, Hiyahh!!"

"Hey, get away from me with that thing!!" Lina screamed while he chased her around the pool with it.

"Don't worry! I'll make it quick! Ninja's honor!"

"Toshi, that's dangerous!! You don't even know how to use a sword yet!!" Kaida yelled but her voice was drowned out by Lina's siblings screaming "Get her Ninja! Get her!" Even I was amused, I knew Toshi wasn't really gonna do anything. I had some sword training back in the day and I knew what stances and angles a sword was to be held if one was intent on actually attacking. Then I remembered how that purple haired chick had wielded that damn Katana… _Splash!!_ Lina fell into the pool and all her brother's started cracking up. Toshi had sheathed the sword, teleported in front of the unsuspecting teen, and stuck his foot out. Even I had to laugh! The way she tumbled in and…oh man, good times!

"Oh! The lot of you laugh? You all are next!" Toshi yelled chasing the other kids and throwing them into the pool one by one. Every now and then, at a safe distance, he would take out the impressive blade and swing it around a little to rile them all up. Boy did it! The kids were tripping all over the place…pure chaos! One of the dudes in the pool screamed "I've been killed by a ninja!"

"Yes, and that ninja is about to be killed as well."

Suddenly the entire pool area went deadly silent. I was going to miss Toshi…Ryu Hayabusa slowly walked towards his son with a very, very pissed off look.

"I knew we left them alone too long," Another man commented. I guess that was Lina's father Jann lee.

"Why, what's happening?" Kasumi's sweet voice inquired curiously. Damn, if I was ten years older and Ryu hadn't gotten dibs…She'd be so mine! Something about her just drove my senses wild…was it the red hair? Those soft brown eyes? Those-

"I told you never to touch this sword! NEVER!" Ryu scolded in Japanese, snatching the sword from Toshi's gloved hands. Kasumi gasped and muttered in English, "Oh, Toshi, you didn't…"

"I'm sorry Papa," Toshi whimpered.(in Japanese)

"Oh-no, Sorry is not cutting it Toshi! This is a very dangerous weapon! And I don't mean simply using it improperly…There's a special seal on it that if broken-get in the house!!" Ryu tried to explain but stopped when he saw how I understood everything he was saying. So Ryu grabbed his son roughly by the collar and dragged him away out of sight. Was the Dragon sword a cursed blade or had it become that way later on and Ryu had to put some spell on it to prevent the curse from destroying all of mankind? Yeah, I watch a lot of TV, mostly anime.

"Alright everybody, I'm sure you're all probably famished!" Kasumi announced, "Let's all get dried off and ready for dinner."

In my mind I wondered, _were we having Diced Toshi…?_


	13. Chapter 13: A long distance call

Nope, we had yakisoba (noodles with boneless chicken bathed in soy sauce) and everyone seemed to like it (I know I loved it! Just like my mom made it…). The kitchen was too small to sit this many people so we all gathered in the living room with the promise that whoever made a mess had to clean it up. Leifang and Kasumi sat on the sofa with little Huan yue snuggled in the middle eating her own special dish of what I guessed to be carrots and peas. Jann lee was chilling in Ryu's favorite chair while the rest of us sat on the floor.

"So Kaida, can you cook like this? I swear I would love you forever!" I said in-between bites. Kaida smiled but I could tell she was still worried about her late brother Toshi. It had been a good fifteen minutes since the last time anyone saw him. I gently patted her hand. "Toshi will be ok."

"I hope so."

"… he's in a better place now."

"Kentaro!"

"Sorry, couldn't resist."

I decided a change in subject was in order here.

"So Jillian, how do you know Lina here?"

"We met in Germany," Jillian quickly answered after slurping up a very long noodle. "Her mom's a close friend of my Karate teacher."

Lina nodded in agreement while dabbing a corner of her mouth with a napkin.

"They're all also staying at my house for the weekend. We have room since my older sis went to College, and her room is huge!"

"I remember seeing it." Kaida finally chimed in. "we could probably fit all this furniture into it and still have plenty of leg room."

"Damn, I need a room like that." I muttered. My room was filled with dressers showcasing my extensive model car collection. I had over a thousand and yes, they take up quite a bit of room. "So what did you two do in Germany?"

"What else? Fight!" Jillian started flailing her arms about making random 'hi-yah!!' like sounds.

"Oh, so you also practice Karate Lina?" Kaida inquired. She shook her head.

"Nope, I study Tai ji Quan."

"Yea and she's really good at it! Kicked my butt a couple of times!"

"A couple Jill?" Lina teased. At least I assumed she was teasing.

"I said what I said!" Jillian chuckled.

"So ninja," Lina started, staring at Kaida, "what do you study?"

"Well, at the current moment I'm studying Hayabusa clan style Ninjustu."

Lina blinked twice. "Say what?"

"It's a ninja martial art." Jillian explained, "Super hush hush. That's why you've never heard of it."

"Is that what your brother studies?"

Kaida first turned to me while I tried my hardest not to come out with it. _That's what he had been studying._ I took my chopsticks and stuffed a massive ball of soba noodles into my mouth.

"What?" I mumbled.

"Anyway, yes Lina." Kaida smiled.

"So is that ability to poof-,"

"Its ninja magic." Jillian finished. Again, Lina had a look of confusion on her face. She soon shook it off and I felt her eyes rest on me.

"So do you study any martial arts?"

"Do I now?" I pretended to ponder. Kaida rolled her eyes.

"He studies Ba ji Quan," she revealed to Lina.

"Ok, that one I've heard of! Well then, since my family is going to be here for the rest of the weekend, I would love to test out my skills against you all." She smiled at Kaida, "Especially you ninja."

"Technically, Kaida would be considered a Kunoichi, it means female ninja."

Lina nodded and continued giving my girlfriend those 'I'm going to take you down' looks. Red flag: She was one of those hyper competitive chicks who want to be better then everyone and everything…just like my mother described Leifang being. I was so glad Kaida wasn't that way because she would drive me bananas! How Jann lee stands it, I'll never know.

A cell phone rang.

"Tag!" I heard Leifang greet enthusiastically in what I'm guessing was German, "You will not believe where I am right now!" She paused as the speaker spoke. "Well, yea, I'm in the States but, hold on, let me put you on speaker."

She raised her index finger to her lips to signal everyone in the room to be quiet. Once the chatter finally ceased, Leifang placed the slime-lined phone on the glass coffee table and pressed a button.

"Hello?" a female voice called out in English. Both Jillian and Kasumi's eyes widened.

"Hitomi sensei!!" Jillian exclaimed running over to the coffee table. "How have you been!!"

"Jillian, it's so nice to hear from you again. I'm fine, you?"

"Ecstatic!!"

Boy, if I didn't know any better, I would've thought Jillian's older sister was this woman. They sounded almost identical, only with Hitomi having a slightly lower voice.

"Hit-Hitomi?" Kasumi said nervously.

"Kasumi!? Is that you? Oh my gosh! I can't believe it! I haven't heard from you in years and if-," she suddenly stopped.

"What's wrong?"

"Yeah Hitomi? You still there?" Leifang joined in after ten seconds went by.

"I am. I'm sorry. My home phone just rang and I thought it might have been Ein."

"Does Hay-Ein live with you currently?" Kasumi sounded like she was either going to burst out with joy or tears depending on the woman's answer. It took me a few to figure out why Kasumi changed from saying Hayate to Ein: Hayate had suffered from amnesia and Hitomi's family took him in. They had decided to name him Ein. I whispered this information to Kaida so she could stay in the loop. At first, she simply nodded and whispered "oh-yea, I remember Mom and Papa telling me about that." But then her eyes widened in fear. "Didn't that Shishio guy say he was dead?"

"Well yes but he's not here right now. I haven't seen him for nearly over a month now…I'm guessing you haven't heard from him either." Hitomi continued, now a sadness being evident in her voice.

"No unfortunately…but-," Kasumi bit her bottom lip.

"But what?"

"Nothing, I'm sure he'll call you as soon as he can, wherever Hay-Ein is."

"That I'm sure of!" Hitomi's voice resumed its original cheeriness.

Kasumi looked a bit uneasy.

"Yo, Hitomi!" Jann lee yelled out.

"Yo!"

"Guess who little Kasumi hooked up with."

"Umm…"

"Jann lee!" Kasumi blushed. Leifang decided to join in on the fun.

"Come on Hitomi, this one's pretty easy. Think back to after we left Zack's island that third time, at the airport-,"

"Ryu?"

There was silence except for a few snickers coming from the Chinese couple.

"A little louder Hitomi," Jann lee said.

"Ryu?!"

"Louder."

"RYU!!"

Suddenly the super ninja appeared in the living room with a puzzled look on his face. All of the Lee's children gasped, obviously not used to being around ninja who seem to like to teleport a lot.

"Does some one need me?" he asked. Everyone erupted into laughter when we all realized what Jann lee had purposely done.

"Oh my god! It is Ryu!!" Hitomi screamed on the other end.

"Um, yes, hello Hitomi…"

"Oooohhh! I knew it, I knew it!!"

"Awwwww Hitomi, you made the ninja blush," Jann lee alerted looking straight at the man's reddening face.

More laughter was heard while Kasumi got up to speak with her husband in their native tongue. Of course, I knew what they were saying.

"Where's Toshi?"

"In the kitchen making himself a plate."

"Did you…discipline him?"

"As in yell really loudly and then calmly explain to him why. Then yes."

"That's a relief. I've never seen you so angry before."

"Because it wasn't really anger…I was just so afraid of Toshi's powers breaking th-," Ryu stopped and looked wearily at me.

"Gomenasai," I apologized as the pair left the room. Darn, that was the second time he caught me eavesdropping! I looked over to Kaida to see if she had heard any of that but Jillian was showing her a picture of some guy with short, layered reddish-brown hair.

"Uh, who's that?" I asked, though not particularly interested. This thing about Toshi having powers was throwing me for a loop. This family was keeping some serious secrets.

"This is Dustin," Jillian informed, "he's Hitomi's son."

Now my interest peaked.

"Hey Kaida, that would make the dude your cousin."

"Huh?"

"The son of Hitomi and your Uncle Hayate…"

"Ah! So is that what my Uncle looks like?" Kaida began studying the picture more closely.

"You guys are related?! Oh man, I can't wait for you two ta meet! Wait a second…Hitomi sensei?" Jillian crawled over to the phone.

"Yes Jill?"

"Is Dustin there? Kaida and I want to say a quick hello."

"I can call him and put him on three way."

"Oh-yea, Dustin, if he ain't a miniature Ein with a better haircut…I swear, if he had been skinny, I would've mistaken Ein for a woman if he's back was turned to me." Jann lee chuckled.

"You're so rude!" Leifang playfully scolded. Jann lee grinned and turned his head to see the Japanese couple walk back into the room.

"You two finished doing 'husband and wife' stuff already? Dang, you ninja are fast!"

"We were just talking." Kasumi blushed.

"Right," he winked. Ryu glared at him.

"So how long are you going to sit in that chair?"

"It's so comfortable…I could probably stay in it forever and ever and-,"

"I think Jann lee knows that's your favorite chair," Kasumi giggled. The super ninja grunted and left the room again. I couldn't help but wonder …where the crap was Toshi? Was he still in the kitchen? I wanted to ask the guy what his dad had spoken to him about. Suddenly, Goldilock's brown eyes widened.

"Almost forgot… Kentaro! You haven't said hello to Hitomi yet!" Jillian pointed an accusing finger at me.

"Neither did Kaida!" I shot back.

"Yea I did," my girlfriend countered, "just a few minutes ago."

Oh, while I was eavesdropping.

"Hitomi-sensei, this is Kaida's boyfriend Kentaro real quick!"

"Good evening?" I greeted. Was it night in Germany? She giggled a little.

"It'd be afternoon but good evening Kentaro! My, you sound like a handsome young man."

I grinned, I liked Hitomi.

Then a new voice came from the small cell phone.

"Was that Jillian's boyfriend?"

"Noooo silly! That was my friend Kaida's boyfriend!" Jillian giggled. Ah, Dustin I presume.

"Don't worry, she's not cheating on you or anything dude." I teased.

"Whatever man!"

Again, the whole house erupted into laughter. I finally spotted Toshi, who was sitting next to the window to the left of the sofa. He couldn't have sat farther away without being in a completely different room.

"Plus, Dustin's like twenty years old." Kaida whispered. I shrugged.

"I'm almost nineteen."

She just looked at me.

"I thought you were seventeen!"

"Eighteen babe."

"So you're the ninja guy that studies karate and knows how to teleport?" Toshi spoke up.

"Well, I'm not really a ninja, but my papa is."

Ryu stood in the walkway and raised a brow.

"So you can't teleport!"

"Yea I can! Jillian has told me a whole lot about you Toshi!"

"Well, just make sure your ready for a beat down cause I'm gonna whoop your-"

"Toshi! That's no way to speak to your cousin!" Kasumi scolded. Toshi gave her a funny look.

"My whatta?"

"Heh?" Dustin echoed.

"I'm sorry, let me explain: Dustin your father's name is Ein, or Hayate, and he is my brother. This is Toshi's mother speaking."

"That's right boys!" Hitomi agreed. Ryu closed his eyes and crossed his arms as if reminiscing about something. "And we'll be there in about two weeks for someone's graduation from high school…"

"That'd be me." Jillian blushed.

"I'd love to talk some more but I've got to get back to the dojo."

"Lunch break up already?" Leifang slightly pouted.

"Yeah, but I'll call you during my next break. And Kasumi, I'll let you know when Ei-Hayate calls."

"Thank you Hitomi. It was very nice hearing from you again."

"Like wise." Ryu added.

"And it was nice to speak with you too Dustin." Kasumi included.

"Same here, uh, Aunt Kasumi."

"And…your uncle," Hitomi said.

"Oh, and Uncle-," he paused for a couple of seconds, "Uncle Ryu or Uncle Hayabusa?"

Ryu smiled "Whichever you prefer." I thought both sounded pretty cool.

"Til next time you two," Jann lee said before gulping down the last of his supper.

The rest of the goodbyes were too numerous and blended for me to differentiate.

"So Uncle Hayabusa, Are you going to join the rest of us for dinner?" Jann lee asked jokingly once Leifang put her cell phone away. He had already refilled his plate.

"No, I've been called in for work unfortunately," Ryu explained, "One of my assistant managers' called out."

"You're a CEO?"

"No, store manager of a Game store."

"How much are they paying you?! The mortage to this place has to be in the hundred thousands!"

"Please, I'm only working there so I can pay the bills. Between me and Kasumi, our tournament winnings paid off the actual house."

"Oh-yea, you won like, what? Four Ryu?" Leifang wondered.

"The second, the fifth, the seventh, and the ninth." Jann lee remembered, "But not the eighth…" he started laughing deviously.

"Big deal Jann, one win," Leifang said rolling her eyes.

"Better then how many times you've won. Let's see, what's' the number I'm looking for? It's between one and, is it ten? No, nine? No, is it below one? Yes, huh? Is it negative one? No, it's Zero! Zip, nada,-"

"We get it; I never won one, whatever!"

Then she said something in Chinese that caused all those who understood to crack up, even Ryu was laughing (I mean a hearty 'Hahahaha!'). I really should start working on learning a new language. Once the laughter died down, Ryu gave me a 'I need to talk to you' look. I immediately jumped up and followed him towards the front door.

"This is purely up to you Kentaro because I believe you're no longer in immediate danger, but do you want to return home or stay here?"

"I sort of like it here." I said, "But I don't want to overstay my welcome…"

He shook his head. "Not at all, it's just that I forget sometimes you understand Japanese and I don't want you to know too much of what's going on with me and my family. I'm sure you've heard of the old saying 'what you don't know can not hurt you'?"

"Yes sir."

"So do you understand?"

I paused to let what he just said sink in. "Yes."

"Good, feel free to stay as long as you like. Jann lee and Leifang told me they wouldn't mind you living here with them either."

Almost forgot about that, the Hayabusa's were all leaving for Japan to help stop the clan wars at the end of this month. Just a few days after graduation…I might never see them again. Kaida…

"I've also gotten in touch with your aunt Helena. Do you know her?" Ryu asked interrupting my thoughts.

"Not super well, I met her when I was five."

"Unfortunately, she can not do anything for you right now; DOATEC is after her…more so then the rest of us."

We both fell silent.

"What is with this company?" I muttered. "It kidnaps my mother, it's trying to kill my Aunty, probably trying to kill us all-,"

"Always keep that in mind." Ryu said sternly, placing his hand on my shoulder for emphasis. I nodded.

"I was able to set up a guestroom, which is next to my daughter's room but I trust that won't be a problem…"

Again, I nodded.

"So it is done." He grinned and left. So Ryu already knew I was going to stay…I turned around on my heel to go tell Kaida the news: Her boyfriend was moving in next door. I took only two steps and she was standing right there.

"What did he say?" she asked, "do you have to go home now?"

"Nope, actually, I'm going to be sleeping in the room next to yours…"

"Wow, my dad must really like you."

"Want to come up stairs and check out my new room with me? I promise to behave."

She laughed and took the hand I offered. Now, I was half expecting a slightly barren room with your basic nightstand, lamp, rug, and then the twin size or queen size bed. That was what the guest room in my house looked like. This one was fully decked out, a king-sized bed with two nightstands on either side,Two oriental syle lamps sitting atop each, a massive dresser, wicked rug with an embroided Black dragon placed between the bed and the door,a thirty-one inch black plasma screen TV hanging on the wall with a Ybox 760 below, and a small Cd rack with twenty plus games in it.

"Your Dad really knows how to set up a guest room." I stated dreamily. This was freaking paradise! I leapt onto the bed…holy crap, it was a water bed! "This is too cool!!"

"He gave you the water bed? Again, wow." Kaida acknowledged sitting on the edge of it.

"Oh come on Kaida! To fully experience the extreme wonder that is the water bed, you must be in the _middle." _I quickly grabbed her arm and brought her in for a very deep kiss. She returned the pressure. After about what had to be two minutes, we parted.

"What happened to your promise to behave?" she asked, still trying to catch her breath. I grinned.

"I didn't include any tongue action…"

This time Kaida initiated the next kiss, and I broke into a sweat. I slowly began 'persuading' her into lying down using my hands…then when I just got her in position-

"What are you doing to my daughter!?"

I leapt out of that bed so fast…

"Kentaro-!" I heard Kaida yell to me but I was long gone. Ryu is gonna kill me…no wait, he went to work. I stopped myself at the bottom of the stairs and looked up. Kaida was right behind me. I formed a frown.

"That was Toshi, wasn't it?"

"Yep."

"Damn it…"


	14. Chapter 14: A fiendish punishment

"Miss Kokoro, you must see this!!"

She looked up at the guard who had just spoken to her. He awaited a response from the woman. She offered none.

"Follow me," he bellowed grabbing her by the arm and literally dragging Kokoro out of her office. She didn't want to see what other sick plots DOATEC was planning for her friends; especially after that last foul demonstration. The scientist had taken a small white mouse and placed it on a circular stainless steel table. Then shot the helpless animal with a pistol, causing Kokoro to gasp. The scientist wore a big smile on his face as he dumped its body into a small beaker filled with a green liquid. The mouse's bullet wound began to close up and to her surprise, it came back to life! The little critter started swimming and successfully climbed out. It shook itself dry. The scientist fed the rodent some cheese and asked if anyone else wanted to try. That poor mouse was killed in so many different sick ways (neck twisted, stomped on, beheaded …she blotched the rest from her mind) but every time, its body healed itself , climbed out, and was awarded a piece cheese.

"We no longer have to worry about lab rat costs," he chuckled, "the rodent kind and human!"

Kokoro wanted to throw up, this wasn't natural. She knew exactly why this miracle liquid was created…the message couldn't have been clearer. As soon as she returned to her office, Kokoro had cried. Disturbing images of her friends being killed in brutal ways just to be reborn and killed again. "Everlasting torture," she whispered. That's when Kokoro vomited and fifteen minutes later, she was being forced into an elevator. They were headed down to the third floor. Kokoro's stomach still felt weak, she wasn't sure if she could handle anything else. _Ding!_ The doors slid open. Kokoro let out a bone chilling scream before falling to her knees. The entire floor, including the ceiling and walls, were covered with a thick layer of blood. Not a single spot was missed.

"What happened? Who-Who did this!!" Kokoro screamed, staring directly at the guard.

"Hayabusa." He answered coldly. Ryu did all this? That would mean he had been here…possibly trying to save her? For the first time in weeks, she smiled. The super ninja managed to infiltrate Headquarters. So there was a very good chance he could do it again.

"There are reports another ninja was with him, Kasumi tis believed." Another guard informed while spraying down the opposite end of the hall from where Kokoro sat. "But Hayabusa caused the most damage; the mutants were reduced to nothing but blood so they can't be revived. Shoot, we lost over five million dollars!"

"Naturally, it's coming out of our paychecks," the man accompanying Kokoro sighed. The woman grunted in disgust at the duo's behavior.

"Ok boss, now I know you're not letting this one slide, those ninjas need to be punished!"

_Is he seriously talking to me?_

She fell silent, glaring evilly at the man. He grinned back.

"Yeah, bet you got something sinister planned for em."

Kokoro continued to glare.

"Alright guys, you heard the woman, release the-," He chuckled, "-the fiend!"

"No, don't! Don't send a-a fiend!!" she yelled. She didn't know what a 'fiend' was but it had to be something bad if it was being sent after Ryu and Kasumi.

"Your right boss... men, Miss Kokoro wants you to send out two fiends!!"

"Stop it! I don-,"

"I'm sorry to inform you but we only have two available at the time. I know you'd love to send an army but trust us, these two will do the trick. Actually, it may be overkill." All the guards in the hallway started cracking up. They were mocking her again.

…

Rachel couldn't sleep, something was very wrong. She had been having these very strange feelings for the past few weeks now but couldn't quite put her finger on what. Could it be she was sensing fiends? _No_, she shook her head, _Ryu had sent them all back to hell_. She shifted uncomfortably in her cot.

_Ryu…why didn't you choose me? I loved you but you wouldn't return it_.

Rachel decided to get up and have something to drink. The house was unusually quiet. After the tenth Dead or Alive tournament, Ayane had invited the fiend hunter to live with her. They had grown to becoming very close friends since she first entered DOA six, but what really got the ball rolling was when the violet Kunoichi sensed the resentment Rachel held towards Kasumi. But Rachel truly felt bad about having ill will towards the little sweetheart, it wasn't her fault Ryu had fallen in love with her. Kasumi never threw her body at him, never whispered manipulative sweet musings in his ear…she only acted like, well, Kasumi. Rachel filled a small cup with water and sipped slowly, enjoying the cool liquid's descent down her throat. Akane and Shishio were running awfully late. Unless, Rachel froze up, Ayane found out the truth about how Rachel attempted to thwart her plans for locating Kasumi. Ayane had split up her clan into three groups to figure out where her red-headed half sister was hiding. Rachel had been paired up with Shishio, amoung others. Rachel was the first in this group to find Kasumi but kept quiet because Ryu was involved. She had spotted the man who haunted her dreams exiting a mall with a pregnant Kasumi by his side. If Ayane had seen, her friend would've lost her mind. To be honest…Rachel nearly had.

_How_ _horrible of me to have wanted to slice Kasumi in half! _

The urge had been terrifyingly strong but she knew Ryu would've stopped her. And if Rachel had managed to scratch Kasumi, he may have killed her. Shishio also had spotted the couple but complied with Rachel's pleas to not say a word. Even at the risk of facing Ayane's wrath if she found out. The cup was now empty. Rachel quickly refilled it and scanned the darkened room.Without the other three housemates, she felt alone…sad…furious! Kasumi could have broken his heart; she could've rejected his love! Yes, and then he would have come running into her awaiting arms. Rachel smiled, imagining how it would feel to run her fingers threw his silky brown hair…stare deeply into his green eyes…feel his soft lips against hers…his hands gently caressing her body…_everything Kasumi is probably experiencing right now!!_

"RACHEL, STOP IT!!" she screamed into the darkness. _I have to face the facts, Ryu doesn't want me. To him, I was a weakling, a woman who couldn't hold her own. A woman who caused more harm then good._

"It's not safe for you to be around me. You should go now."

"It's over."

_Signs_, she remembered angrily, _signs_ _that he didn't want me and I ignored them! I came searching for him and he still didn't want me._

…

"_Rachel, what did you want to talk to me about?"_

"_Ryu, I-I love you."_

"…"

"_Ryu?"_

"…"

"_Please say something, please say you love me too."_

"…"

"_Please!"_

"_I'm sorry."_

"_No,no! Tell me you love me!"_

"_I do care about you but I'm not in love with you."_

"_Don't break my heart like this Ryu; I know you're not this cruel!"_

"_Rachel, I'm not in love with you. I'm sorry."_

"_Not yet, I understand. It's too soon."_

"_No, I know I'm not in love with you."_

"_Ryu, don't do this to me."_

"…_I don't but I can not lie to you." _

"_Then tell me the truth."_

"_I-,"_

_She stopped listening for a split second and then returned her attention to him._

"_- love you, do you understand?"_

"_Yes. I will always love you."_

"_Rachel…"_

"_Hmmm?"_

"_Snap out of it."_

She was back in the small house, still alone. So bitterly alone. The feeling had not passed; no doubt a fiend had to be near. Maybe that was why her housemates were gone, they were battling it. Rachel quickly grabbed her War hammer and hurried out into the cold night…


	15. Chapter 15: Akane's violet storm

"Akane? Akane! Wake up!"

My eyes slowly began to focus. Something horrible had happened…but what?

"Akane!"

There was that voice again. "Wha-?" I answered weakly.

"I was so worried…"

Finally, my eyes opened completely and I immediately began scanning my surroundings. It was definitely your run of the mill dull gray room with boxes sporting various symbols and letters. I tried to decipher some of them but none made any sense. Doatec had created its own strange language. My eye's finally turned to Master Shishio, who was breathing heavily and holding his left arm. My memory was still a bit hazy, but I did remember us both taking on a legion of Doatec guards before I had been knocked out.

"Master Shishio? What happened to you?" I whispered.

"Nothing I won't live through," he replied. We fell silent for a moment, trying to see if any guards had sensed our stirring. Nothing.

"What should we do Master Shishio?" I asked.

"First, take this." He removed a small vile full of green liquid from one of the folds in his robes around the chest area.

"May I ask what this substance is?"

"I'm not sure but I had swiped it from one of the higher ranked officials on board. It may be one of the keys to DOATEC's plot."

I nodded in understanding and hid the vile underneath the fold in my pants…which is also the same place I kept all my Kunai.

"Now," Master Shishio stood up to his full height of an impressive six foot two, "the hard part. When we leave this room, we will be attacked by those mutated creatures. I had believed the liquid in the vile was what masked the enemies' scent from those things but the wound on my arm told me that's not the case."

"I should have enough Kunai to take them all out," I reassured but he shook his head.

"I would rather you use those on the guards. Right now, I'm going to need you to start setting yourself up for a powerful ninpo spell. "

"Understood."

Master Shishio knocked over three boxes that had been stacked and revealed a stainless steel door with a small window. He peeked through and sighed in frustration.

"Their just sitting there waiting. As if trying to predict our first move…well, lets see how they handle this. Akane, perform the Art of the violet storm."

I couldn't help but gasp. That was my mother's most powerful attack and I barely knew how to even start it, forbid me trying to complete it! But Master Shishio has given me this task for a reason: He believes I can do it. I immediately straightened my posture and began channeling my chi while chanting those secret words. I felt my energy forming a soft breeze that encircled my entire body. Soon the softness turned into a sharp wind that whipped at my clothes and stung my face. I had successfully completed phase one.

"Keep it up Akane!" master Shishio directed as I heard the door being kicked out. I heard the creatures' frenzied battle roars and cries. I kept concentrating, trying to build up my chi energy to the height I needed for the attack to implement the amount of damage Master Shishio expected of it.

"Where's the other one?" I heard a guard yell. A smile formed upon my lips, they would find me once it was too late. Now a thick violet cloud surrounded my entire being and the fatigue began to creep in. I was using a lot of chi.

"What the hell?!" a man yelled entering the room. I didn't need to open my eyes to know he was accompanied by three others. Just as I had calculated, they found me in the final stage of the spell. The cloud was already formed which meant nothing could hurt me. Their guns went off and I actually found the sound of bullets bouncing harmlessly off my death cloud rather soothing. Oh mother, if you could see me! I was finally doing one for your attacks perfectly but as usual, your not here to see it. No, you always come when I mess up…Always!! The anger began consuming my body as I reminisced about all the failures I had endured under her critical eyes…

…

"Akane! Do you understand that being my only daughter means you will someday lead the Hajin-mon clan?" my mother reminded me for the tenth time that day. I was having difficulty mastering the _Rashin-Haguro-Geri,_ which was a very fast back facing combo attack. For some very odd reason I always misjudged the location of my opponent (who was Master Shishio at the time) and struck the air, always just one millimeter too far too the left or right with my punches. I would completely miss my final kick. In the world of the Shinobi, a millimeter can be the difference between life and death. I nodded before bowing my head in shame.

"Mistress Ayane, maybe we should take a break." Master Shishio suggested. My mother gawked at the idea.

"Not until Akane masters this combo. Now try it again!!"

The sweat was dripping off my face but I knew I had to do this. I watched as Master Shishio circled me and when I believed him in the right position, whipped my body around so my back was to him. I begun to spin like a top but this time, I tripped on my own two feet. My mother sighed in disgust.

"Why was I cursed with such a failure?! What have I ever done to deserve this? I give up."

"Mother-," I called out with tears in my eyes. She glared at me.

"Never call me that again, not until you become a competent Kunoichi, so for now…feel free to call Rachel momma or Shishio papa, I really don't care!"

"Mistress Ayane-," Master Shishio started but was immediately cut off with the _Rashin-Haguro-Geri _performed expertly by her. He fell to the ground with multiple bruises forming around his face. She moved her right hand up and left hand down, then vice versa making sure they touched in the middle. My mother did this three times in rapid succession.

"And that is how you perform the damn _Rashin-Haguro-Geri._"

…

"Don't take it too personally sweetie," Rachel comforted, giving me one of her patented 'suffocation-inducing' hugs. "Your mother is just a little frustrated, so much is happening. More then you could possibly understand right now."

"I'm smarter then I look, please tell me!" I had pleaded. She smiled at me.

"You are definitely an intelligent little girl but…"

"But what Aunty Rachel?"

"Your mother is probably going to hate me for telling you this but you have another Aunt, your mother's blood sister."

"Ooh?"

"And your mother thinks that your Uncle Hayate likes your other Aunt more then her."

"Really? But Uncle Hayate likes me!"

"No, He absolutely loves you!" she tapped my nose gently, causing me to giggle, "Just as much as me and Shishio love you."

"Does my other Aunty love me?"

"I'm sure she would."

"What's her name?"

"…Kasumi but promise me you will never mention the name around your mother, ok?"

"I promise Aunty Rachel."

"Good girl."

"Is Aunty Kasumi nice?"

"Hmm? Oh yes, she's a sweet heart."

"I want to meet her."

"I'm afraid that isn't possible right now."

"Why?"

"She's disappeared into the forest and no one knows where she is."

"Is she dead?"

"Oh no, Ryu would never let her die."

"Who's Ryu?"

"A very wonderful, wonderful, wonderful man…"

"Do you like him Aunty Rachel?"

"…"

"Aunty Rachel?"

"I bet your hungry after all that training, what do want to eat?"

I giggled at the sudden change in subject "Yes, I'm hungry! Um, Aunty Rachel?"

"Yes dear?"

"Would aunty Kasumi think I'm a failure and hate me like my mother-?"

"What did you just ask Rachel, Akane?" my mother asked entering the kitchen. Her eyes were ablaze with anger. I shivered violently.

"Ayane, please-" Rachel started but my mother shoved her hand into her face.

"Shush! Now Akane, I demand that you repeat that question right now!"

The tears started to flow and I choked on my words. She slapped me. "Answer me!!"

"I-I…I HATE YOU!!" then I bolted for the door, "I'm going to live with Aunty Kasumi and-and Ryu!!"

"To hell with you, you brat!! You're just like my damn sister anyway! Go ahead and run away from the Hajin-mon clan and see if I don't send ninja assassins after you. That's what happened to Kasumi, you want the same fate? You can barely spar let alone take on shinobi's in actual combat! The only reason she's still alive is because of-,"

I grabbed a small cutting knife and started slashing at her while spinning. I had done it so fast; I managed to get some cuts in. Before my mother could strike back I made sure to flip out of the way. Then I went in for a stab that stuck in deep just below the knee cap. She hollered out in pain before giving me a kick that sent me crashing into the cupboards. My mother snatched the blade out of her leg and threw it to the floor.

"Lucky shot," she huffed and exited the kitchen with a limp. I crawled over to the knife. It was thickly covered with her blood.

That was the last time I saw her, I was eight years old.

...

With master Shishio's help, I was able to master Mugen-Tenshin clan Ninjustu Hajin-mon sect. My mother was off on some long journey during these years which is why I figured I succeeded.

"Now I can't wait for Mother to see me now!" I beamed while we were hiking up a very steep cliff.

"You should be proud, very few can truly master this art and I'm happy to say you are definitely one of them."

I had stopped for a second to take in the compliment.

"Thank you Master Shishio."

He nodded and continued up the cliff with me right behind. A couple of minutes later, we stood atop it just as the sun was rising. I sat down next to Master Shishio. We always shared this moment together, one of the few peaceful moments in my life.

"Did you know your mother and father used to do this every morning?" he asked me lazily. I kept looking out at the distance.

"I was not aware of this."

"She was so happy then…"

"But I came along and messed it all up."

"…"

The first rays of sunlight gently stroked the trees within it's reach. It was so beautiful to watch as the autumn leaves began to glow with a new life. Master Shishio sighed.

"It was not you Akane, please don't put yourself down that way."

"I will no longer do so."

"You don't mean it."

A soft breeze blew threw, lightly lifting our hair from our faces before allowing the strands to fall back into place. Then it passed through the trees, causing multiple leaves to separate themselves from the tree that had mothered them.

"When you were first born, you looked exactly like your Aunt Kasumi." Master Shishio continued after a brief pause, "you had her red hair and those same large, hazel eyes…Your mother didn't know what to do with you. Your father and Rachel pretty much raised you until your hair changed to its present dark violet color."

"Rachel told me the reason why my mother hates Aunt Kasumi so much is because she believes Uncle Hayate loved her more."

"It's deeper then that but believe me, your mother loves you dearly."

"She has a funny way of showing it."

"She was worst when it came to loving your father." I couldn't tell if Master Shishio was being serious or meant that as a joke.

"What ever happened to Papa?" I asked, though I had a feeling he had probably died when I was younger.

"Once Mistress Ayane returns from her trip, we will find out."

My eyes widened. "But I thought he was dead and mother had left because of me."

He shook his head, his raven black hair falling into his deep chestnut eyes.

"A messenger had come with a letter stating Doatec had Master Ryuni, your father, held prisoner until she went to go 'pick' him up."

"Doatec?" the name sounded familiar. Then it hit me, many of the elders in the clan murmured about the company and all the horrible things it had done to ninja in the past. Something about a project Epilson and Alpha-152 had been the main topics...

"It's a very evil corporation, I watched from the sidelines it's destruction. I was nine at the time, knowing I was watching something that would go down in history."

The sun's rays lit up our faces and saw that his brow was furrowed.

"But now it has returned?"

"I just hope Mistress Ayane can successfully bring Master Ryuni back and make amends with Master Hayate in time to battle Doatec before it becomes too powerful."

"I hope so too, we will need all the help we can get." I agreed. Uncle Hayate was a highly skilled ninja and his clan, the Mugen-Tenshin, was the most powerful up to date (A title previously held by the Hayabusa clan and then the Black Spider clan.). The reason my mother broke all ties with my Uncle just because he had refused to allow her carry out Kasumi's death sentence when the oppurtunity presented itself. Did she not realize Kasumi was his sister? That Kasumi was her sister? I shook my head; my mother seems to have a bad habit of hurting those who tried to love her…like me.

The sound of motors could be faintly heard in the distance. Master Shishio and I rose to our feet. Over twenty jets littered the sky in less then four seconds…Doatec's invasion had already begun.

…

"Yahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!"

I released my fury upon those pathetic soldiers who were instantly killed on impact. My violet storm continued its destructive path outside of this 'prison cell' and into the main rooms. More blood curling screams echoed throughout the jet as more unfortunate souls were engulfed and incinerated until all was finally quiet. I fell to my knees having foolishly used up more chi energy then was needed. Master Shishio re-entered the room appearing completely unscathed. Well, besides for that bandage on his arm.

"Very impressive Akane," he praised offering me a hand. I accepted and he helped me to my feet before turning away. "Will you be strong enough to continue fighting?"

I felt guilty; he knew I had overdone it.

"Y-Yes Master Shishio, I can proceed."

"Stay vigilant, I'm unsure of how many other enemies are still lurking onboard."

As we made our way through the jet, I viewed the destruction my violet storm had caused. Piles of ashes were scattered everywhere, puddles of melted metal existed where walls used to be, and other random debris that I could not make out. Some of it may have been guns; others may have been limbs. I kicked them out of my way while watching for any stray enemies. Nothing. Besides for the usual sounds one hears on a jet, the aircraft was silent.

"Where are you all hiding?" Master Shishio whispered, it sounded more as if he was speaking to himself then me. I was not very fond of this situation either…we were probably walking straight into a trap. In three seconds, I was proven correct.

"DUCK!!" I screamed as I fell to the ground. I spotted Master Shishio doing the same as a small rocket sailed over us and exploded once making impact with what used to be the last untouched wall in the jet.

"Who the hell did that?" Master Shishio growled. We heard some one laugh manically as they approached us through the thick cloud of smoke its rocket launcher created. Master Shishio and I immediately leapt to our feet. Who ever this nut job was knew how to stalk ninja…I didn't sense their presence until after the trigger had been pulled. The laughing became clearer, I recognized it as female. Her figure started to form as she came in closer. I glanced over to Shishio. He gasped.

"It's you!"


	16. Chapter 16:The biolab heist

"I thought I killed you already…Christie!" Master Shishio snarled. She merely laughed again.

"Please boy, I was merely pretending, just so I could see your face once I made a return appearance. Neither you nor your little friend here disappointed."

There was no doubt in my mind this Christie woman was the one in charge. She was very tall, most likely about five ten or eleven with jet black hair. There where red streaks in it but I couldn't be sure if it were highlights…or blood. Christie's eyes were stretched to give them a snake-like appearance, probably from plastic surgery, and her iris' were a twisted grayish yellow color. It made them kind of pretty. The next feature about her that caught my eye (besides that rocket launcher) was her breasts. The size of them was just ridiculous big…twice as large as Aunty Rachel. And she was not shy about flaunting them either; her red business jacket was _wide_ open. Her pants couldn't be lower on her hips and one could rest assured that she was clean shaven. Several guards ran up behind her.

"Damn it, well this time I'll make sure you go to hell!" Master Shishio yelled charging for the woman. He dodged the barrage of bullets and a rocket before unsheathing his sword, stabbing her right between the eyes. Christie merely sighed and kicked Master Shishio in the abdomen. He quickly rolled out of the way as the guards showered him with bullets. The woman soon raised her hand and the gun fire ceased.

"Stabbing me between the eyes? You've done this already, I thought ninja were more creative then this," she pouted while effortlessly removing the sword from her forehead. _What?! How did that not kill her?_ I decided it was my turn and lunged. Once I was two feet away, I threw two kunai into her chest. Besides staggering back a bit Christie seemed just fine.

"Wow, did you really think-," she had started when my kunai finally exploded! Christie screamed for a split second before collapsing into a bloodied heap. I had made sure that the two I threw had tiny explosives attached.

"Now we can focus on these other guys," Master Shishio said already back on his feet. More surprises came our way as none of the guards were dying from slit throats or pierced chests. I thought back to what that woman had said. _"You've done this already;_ _I thought ninja were more creative then this…"_

"Master Shishio, how exactly did you kill these guards last time?" I asked.

"Same way we are now-," He realized what I was getting at, "So, they can't be killed the same way twice, huh?"

He spied the rocket launcher and quickly picked it up, then aimed. I started spinning through the crowd with my katana in hand to give Master Shishio some time to charge the rocket launcher with his Ki energy. Once the weapon began to glow a deep crimson color, he pulled the trigger. Limbs flew everywhere.

"Very nice Master Shishio," I complimented. He grinned.

"Think this weapon's a keeper."

We quickly made our way to what we hoped to be the control room. Master Shishio first tried kicking the door out but it remained intact. He kicked it again, this time with more strength behind it. It still had no effect.

"Hpmh, time for the big guns then," he muttered, aiming his new rocket launcher and shot the door at point blank range. Once the smoke cleared, I couldn't believe my eyes. _Not even a dent!_ Master Shishio cursed under his breath before he looked to me.

"Guess we'll have to enter the old fashioned way…ready to begin the key hunt?"

I nodded and we went our separate ways. I already had my suspicions of where the key may be hidden but I was skeptical if my target was still in the spot I had left her in. I decided to run along the walls to make my trip quicker, with two kunai in each hand. Naturally Christie was gone. _Just who was this woman?_ Three gunshots rang in rapid succession as I quickly leapt from the wall to the floor while sending my kunai at her weapon. She may have been able to sneak up on me once but I refused to fall for the same trick twice. _Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. _

"Not bad at all." She purred, dodging both of my projectiles and lifted her weapons at me once more. I managed to sidestep the first round but the second was too close for comfort. One of the bullets managed to skim my cheek, leaving a small cut.

"You're not bad yourself," I said and flipped upwards before teleporting, "but still not good enough!" I reappeared right above her and smacked her forehead with the heel of my right shoe. My other shoe struck her mouth. I landed gracefully with my back turned to her.

"Foolish girl!" she laughed aiming her pistols at my back. To be honest I almost felt like laughing myself: Time for the _Rashin-Haguro-Geri. _I expertly begun to spin and struck out knocking the

weapons from her hands. Then I whacked her smartly between her breasts as to avoid my blows from being padded by the silicon they'd been injected with. A final, quick kick to the face

sealed the deal. Christie glared up at me after falling on her butt.

"I remember that bloody combo!" she exclaimed, "Damn it, why didn't I counter that last kick? Tell me child, who taught you those moves?"

"Why should I?"

"Such rudeness, arrogance…you are definitely Ayane's girl."

I pretended not to recognize the name. Christie stood up and assumed a fighting stance foreign to me. She was in a crouching position with hands held up at the same level as her shoulders, and her fingers pointed towards me in a dagger-like fashion. She smiled coldly.

"I'm going to tear you apart."

I prepared myself to first take the defensive so I could figure out her style. Christie must've already predicted this because she started off with a grab, twirling around my body like a snake before throwing me to the floor. As soon as I leapt up, her dagger like hands stabbed me in the abdomen at least ten times. The pain the attack had inflicted caught me off guard. Though it left me incredibly sore; I knew my stalling of the boss was giving Master Shishio the time he needed to find the key. That is if it wasn't with Christie. I attempted a low kick to throw her off balance but I was flipped up into the air and left to fall on _my_ butt. Again, she predicted exactly what was going through my mind. Christie had implied she's fought my mother before… was I fighting like she had? That was the only explanation for it.

"Come on little Ayane, I'm sure your mother taught you better then that."

"Shut up! I'm nothing like-like…her!"

Christie grinned knowing full well she hit a nerve. "You know child, me and my mother were never close either."

"Look, I'm really not in the mood to sit down, have a cup of tea, and swap life stories."

"I like you little Ayane or will you tell me your real name?"

"I don't give a damn what the hell you call me!" I exclaimed with a cannon kick to the abdomen. She bounced against the wall but managed to quickly resume her snake-like stance. Christie proved a worthy adversary…well, at least until I finally figured out her fighting style. The majority of her attacks would be classified in the mid-to-low range so countering those became a snap. It was those damn high kicks that would get me every time and had left me with both a swollen left eye and bloodied nose. I gave her the same injuries in retribution while noticing these did not magically heal._ Notes: In order for them to heal back to full health, they have to die._ Knocking her unconscious should fit the bill just nicely. I cornered Christie right where Master Shishio and I had been about an hour ago, right in front of the entrance to the control room.

"Getting better," she complimented, "so now what are you going to do? One wrong move and you just might end up dead."

I disregarded the threat as an attempt to throw off my concentration and began to spin. Christie's eyes followed my movements carefully as I spun first towards her and then backed-up before I came out with a powerful mid kick. The bitch blocked and grabbed me once again, giving me a face full of stilettos. My left eye finally swelled shut and left me completely vulnerable for a good six seconds. I sensed Christie trying to sneak up on my blind side and quickly whipped out my katana, I needed her dead…even if it would be for only about five minutes before she returned to full health. I slashed and my Katana hit something but it wasn't flesh it was…wires? A sharp kick to the mid section knocked me right into them and an unknown amount of electricity surged through my body.

"I warned you," she smiled coldly as I laid there shivering. Christie took out some sort of card and kicked my convulsing body into the now opened control room. I hadn't felt a thing. "Now my little Ayane, would you like to be given the gift of rebirth like me? I would hate to see a beautiful young creature just die."

"SSSS-sssttt-tttaaaaaaa-aaay AAa-aaa-waa-ayay," I warned but she simply laughed at my empty threat.

"Just like Ayane, defiant to the end."

So my mother was dead…my father probably too. Wait, no, they may have been resurrected into nut jobs like this lady. My mind was fading fast and I came to the dreadful realization that I would be joining them shortly. "_In the end, I have proven myself a failure but mother, you failed too-," _

The sound of a rocket caused my heart to do a double back flip within my chest.

"MMm-mmaaaaa-aaaasttttterr Shis-shh-shishio!!"

"Rest, I've got this." He directed and I miraculously was able to move to the opposite corner of the room. Something was bothering me…I was feeling a strange sensation in my leg. There was blood. Quickly lifting up the flap, I saw that the vile full of the strange green substance shattered and left shards of glass in my leg. Who knew how much of that poison seeped into my wound. I leaned back trying to make it more comfortable for me to breath but my time was almost up. The sound of glass exploding caught my attention for one last time…Master Shishio had attempted in throwing the massive weapon at Christie's head but missed by a long shot. Everything not bolted down went flying out of the window, with my body slowly making its way out. The last thing I remember seeing was Master Shishio landing a powerful punch on the side of Christie's jaw.

…

_Stars. Clouds. Moon, half crescent. Boxes. Shards of metal._

I re-awoke falling through the night sky with no idea of how close to the ground my body was. It was strange, I felt…perfect. My left eye no longer was sealed shut, heck; there was no sign of it even being swollen. And my limbs were no longer numb…I had successfully respawned like Christie had.

"Master Shishio?" I called out wearily but knowing that there would be no answer. The jet must've exploded and I survived thanks to the strange green substance now flowing through my veins. _Just wonderful…wait, are those boxes following me? _There was a lot of debris falling along its own flight pattern but those boxes I had seen on the jet with the strange markings, they were surrounding me! Two attempted to squish me between them but I managed to dodge by stretching out my body to slow my descent and float upwards temporarily. The two boxes rebounded off each other, making a strange sound…was it a growl? I landed atop one and pierced my katana into it. The box screeched as blood poured out of its wound. The other boxes quickly 'flew' over to their comrade and I quickly leapt off to watch the mayhem unfold. The boxes finally took on their true shape, forming into fearsome bat-like creatures. Aunt Rachel told me about them…Quetzalcoatl she had called them.

"Fiends?!" I whispered loudly to myself. No wait, they couldn't possible be, could they? Once the wounded creature had been completely devoured I saw its peers look in my direction. _Let's see…there are seven of them_. The first unfortunate monster to make its way to me suffered a severed wing. I repeated the process until only one stood in my way and not a moment too soon, I could see a glimmering city below me. Though I couldn't tell where I was, I knew this was definitely not Japan. The creature tried to ram me but I simply rolled to the side, sliced its right wing, and grabbed the left. For about three minutes, I was at peace. A fairly soft breeze blew through my hair while the moon lit my way. I quickly snapped out of it when my "ride" got its head magically chopped off and crashed neck first on top of a gigantic skyscraper. While flipping off the fiend, I attempted in viewing just who had attacked. Or possibly, what had attacked? I unsheathed my katana and waited. _Nothing…but I know something's here…_

Swooosh!!

I barely was able to block the weapon as it grazed my forehead. If I hadn't pushed it away with my Katana, the entire top half of my head would've been removed. I spied the blade making a return trip towards my head but this time, I was able to classify it: A Kusari-gama. The bladed part was being swung at me with incredible precision, meaning its wielder was had to be of high skill. I rapidly performed three back flips so I could escape the weapon's attack range. _About three feet ought to be far enough._ Finally, the wielder made his debut by flipping far above my head while trying to slice me in half. I barely rolled out of the way. My opponent was of what appeared to be Asian descent, Japanese to be more specific. Upon closer observation, his eyes were an icy cold blue and platinum blonde hair that was up in a spiky bush. He wore nearly all black except for a white T-shirt peeking out from under his sleeveless vest.

"Do you work for Doatec?" I yelled out while avoiding another attack from the chain-sickle. He brought it back to him and gave me a strange look.

"Don't you?" he asked back with a slight French accent in his Japanese. Ah, so he does understand my native tongue.

"No, I was kidnapped by their henchmen but I was able to escape."

"So you're not a fiend?"

"No."

"Then what's with the purple hair and red eyes?"

"I inherited these traits from my mother."

"Seriously? It's natural? The carpets match the drapes?"

I blinked twice, "What?"

He scratched the back of his head and sent me an awkward grin. "Never mind, so who exactly are you?"

"I am Akane, a member and future leader of the Hajin-mon ninja clan."

"Hajin-mon definitely rings a bell. Your fortunate you escaped, Doatec is making puppets of all ninja around the world to even the odds in their favor."

"Are you a ninja?" I had to ask, he was using a traditional ninja weapon with exceptional skill and believe me, Kusari-gamas are not sold in your local stores.

"It'd be pretty cool but no, I'm not."

"Then how'd you get that-"

"Twas given to me by my grandfather, Muramasa. Said some ninja he knew was no longer in need of it's services and gave it to him.(He laughed a bit) Lets just say grandfather was more then willing to get rid of it for some odd reason. Lo and behold the weapon is mine."

"Hmmm…Muramasa was the greatest swordsman that ever lived."

He nodded before smiling, "You seem like someone I can trust…the name's Neil."

I had a feeling he was giving me an alias. Though the name did fit his appearance nicely…

"Did you come alone?" Neil continued now walking towards me.

"Uh, no. There was another with me, Master Shishio who is also a Hajin-mon ninja. I lost him after a battle with this woman named Christie."

Neil gasped. "Did sh-she look human or like…something else?"

"She appeared human but her abnormal ability to respawn after dying would probably classify her as a –"

"Fiend. Damn it, so it is true. Helena will not be pleased."

"Who's Helena? Is she who you are working for?"

"You know something about Helena?" Neil's eyes began to narrow. I quickly shook my head.

"No, no, you just said her name so I assumed."

The man opened his mouth to speak but the building we stood on started to rumble. Neil and I both made the silent decision to leap off the side down to safety. He stood on the edge while I ran over to him and he took my hand. I yanked it away.

"I can make the jump by myself." I informed.

"From nine hundred and seventy five feet?"

"Watch and learn."

Besides, I just finished falling from the sky out of a jet that was who knows how many feet above. This was a cake walk. I gracefully dived off the edge and stretched out all my limbs to glide towards the ground. Unfortunately, the asphalt wasn't the only thing ready to greet me down below. Several Doatec soldiers had guns aimed and a few started firing. I quickly rolled my body into a ball and focused all my Ki energy until everything around began to glow a bright bluish-gray. The art of the Wind blades, a technique Master Shishio had told me that was taught to him by Master Ryu who in turn taught me. By the time my feet hit the ground, all the soldiers were reduced to nothing but randomly scattered limbs. Neil landed about two feet away from me with an expression of astonishment.

"Ms. Akane, you are officially my new best friend." He said removing his parachute. I grinned, _if only you could've seen me mother…_

A large burst of blue lightening pierced the night sky from below the now crumbling sky scraper.

"Did you do that?!" I heard Neil yell. Several more bolts shot out and the building finally erupted into flames.

"Now would be an excellent time to be making our exit." I informed.

"I can't leave without April, she's still inside."

"April?" I repeated confused but Neil was already headed towards the flames. He didn't run far…an explosion sent several pieces of flaming metal (among other things) our way. He quickly made a sharp right and motioned me to follow. Thick, black smoke started filling the area and I ended up losing sight of Neil. _Damn it, now what'll I do? First Master Shishio and now-_

My vision was temporarily blinded by incredibly bright lights before I felt a strong arm around my waist and my body hoisted upwards. I pulled out my Kunai to slit the throat of the being that dared touch me but it was expertly smacked out of my hand.

"Did I scare you my little ninja friend?" Neil asked while performing a one-eighty on his motorcycle.

"You could've given me more warning!" I snarled. He chuckled and sped us out of the thick cloud. Another motorcycle with a young red-headed woman sitting atop it was awaiting our arrival patiently. She suddenly raised her gun (a sniper rifle I believe) and aimed it towards my head. No, just behind my head and pulled the trigger. I turned briefly to see a respawning Doatec soldier fall dead from a bullet to the head. Neil put on the brakes so he could park his bike next to hers.

"Whoa April, sweet shot, was there any scope involved? Cause it sure didn't look like it."

She smiled and looked at me thoughtfully.

"First, let's get outta here before any more Doatec goons start respawning and then get to tea, crumpets, and introductions." Neil said looking back nervously.

"Sounds like a-," she quickly pulled out her rifle again and fired a single shot. Three Doatec soldiers fell from a shot to the head. "-good idea." This woman was obviously of English descent, her British accent was strong. Something else about her struck me; her facial features resembled another's…

"Now, I've already called in for air support." she informed remounting her bike.

"So our ride out of here should be arriving about-"

Six pearly white jets made their way towards the wreckage, with one descending as it came towards us.

"Hold on Akane." Neil warned and he didn't start up the engine until he felt me tighten my grip around his waist._ Geez, paranoid much? _Yet, I was still flattered this man was showing me, a stranger, so much care and concern. _You could learn something from him mother…I really need to stop thinking about her…_

The jet hovered in the air with a small ramp open and ready for us to board. I heard several explosions from behind, those other five jets were blasting the living daylights out of those Doatec zombies. Had to give this Helena woman her props, her little resistance group's mission seemed to have been successful by the smiles of the two people I just became affiliated with. April drove up the ramp first with me and Neil right on her tail. The inside of the jet was surprisingly spacious. I leapt off the bike before the blonde had fully come to a stop. I expected him to scold me or something but he parked and shrugged at my stare.

"We're safe now…so April, what happened back there? I don't remember blowing the Bio-lab up being part of the mission."

"Let's just say I found more then I bargained for when I infiltrated the lab itself. A weird, blue bird man started attacking me with lightening bolts as if he were Zeus. Anyway, I was assisted by a man in black with long reddish, brown hair. I probably wouldn't have made it out alive without his help."

"Did you say a man in black!?" another female voice yelled running towards us. She looked older then April and flaunted shoulder length dark brown hair.

"No Sonia, it wasn't Ryu. This man didn't have green eyes." April informed. The brunette frowned before she spotted me. Neil put a hand on my shoulder.

"Everyone, this is Akane, the newest member of the Douglass Anti-Doatec group. She also had a run in with (his voice became softer) Christie."

April tightened her fists and closed her eyes. "What has happened to her?"

"She's a fiend now."

The woman simply mouthed the word: "Mother…"


	17. Chapter 17:What a night

"Christie was your mother?" I asked curiously. April nodded blinking back the tears.

"Was." She repeated sadly.

"I also believe two other people were turned from humans to fiends." I continued. The three people on the jet gave me their full attention. "My parents."

"There could be a third," Neil continued. "That Master Shishio guy you told me about earlier."

"Possibly but the jet we were being transported in was destroyed. He is still alive…somewhere around here."

They all gave me sympathetic looks. I grunted, thoroughly irritated. I knew Master Shishio was just fine. I just knew it...

"If he's still out here in the North Sea, the scanners will soon sense him and start-"

_Beep! Beep!_

"Beeping?" I finished. The brunette nodded smiling.

"Not a moment too soon, eh?"

Everyone quickly got into their respective positions, with Neil being the one lowered towards the sea. I had wanted to help Master Shishio but Neil refused. He said it was best if I stayed on the jet…but I knew the real story: It'd be easier to keep track of me. I still wasn't trusted and I didn't trust them as well, particularly April for some odd reason. I tried to keep her within eyesight but she preferred being behind me with that sniper rifle held firmly in her hands. She proved to me she was a good shot earlier…not exactly someone you want trying to kill you. I sighed quietly to myself while awaiting Master Shishio's arrival. I would feel much better knowing he was onboard. About five minutes passed and Neil finally climbed back up onto the jet alone.

"No sign of him." He stated simply.

"What!? Are you sure!! You-You! You said the scanners sensed him!" I exploded looking dead at Sonia.

"Th-they did, maybe he moved out of range when he saw the jet. Probably wasn't sure if it was friend or foe."

She put up a good point. "Well then, I should've been the one to go down there so we wouldn't have this problem!"

"Calm down kid, besides, who is this Master Shishio to you anyway? Friend, mentor …lover?" April purred, slightly reminding me of Christie's voice.

I blushed and turned my back to them all. _Lover? Me and Master Shishio? No…no, he probably sees me as a younger sister or something…right?_

"He's a close family friend." I finally spoke but the smiles from the crew secretly holding me prisoner told me they were not convinced.

"Since he's a master ninja, he'll probably be ok." Neil said leaning against the wall with arms crossed, "we've got to get back to HQ before Doatec goons start flocking out here. There's a ton of debris from that destroyed jet (he looked at me.) so it shouldn't be long."

"In the meantime, Akane, you should go get some rest before we arrive at our next destination." Sonia smiled. April placed a heavy hand on my shoulder.

"You can bunk in my room."

Now why did I feel so unsecure about this arrangement? Hmmmmm…. (_Sarcasm, by the way)_

It was a small room, as I guessed, with two cots solidly attached to the wall one on top of the other. Both adorned with blood red sheets.

"Cozy." I commented. April chuckled.

"Better then sleeping on the woodland ground I presume?"

I ignored her and climbed up to the top cot ready to fight if she had a problem with it. We were in a very small room, giving me the advantage…but that thought dissipated when I spied her placing the rifle in a dresser drawer. Then she removed a large, white t-shirt from the same drawer and threw it upwards. "Just something to sleep in so you can get out of those smelly clothes. I won't look." I caught it and switched into it. The shirt suddenly didn't seem that large on, it barely covered my rear. April took my ninja garb and threw them outside the door.

"Someone'll pick it up and wash it for you." she stated simply.

"So, you and your mother were close?" I asked. Since I was 'bunking' with April, it'd be a good idea to learn something about her. She gave me a weird look.

"Curious why?"

"Yes or no? You don't have to go into any detail."

"Mostly yes, till recently no."

"Was she and Helena good friends?"

Silence, I expected it. "Neil mentioned Helena to me." I added after about thirty seconds.

"Big mouth," she muttered in a low voice (course I could still hear her.) Then in a louder voice, "They had a rather complicated relationship."

Silence again. I put the sheets around me and laid my head down on the soft pillows. Hey, it actually was cozy…

"Go on," I urged her.

"What? Do you expect me to turn this into some type of bedtime story for you?"

"Why are you so suspicious of me? It's not like I'm asking for details on your organization…just want a little background on the woman I fought earlier this evening."

"And who exactly will be receiving this information once I give it to you? Master Shishio?"

"My clan, the Hajin-mon. Then they will make sure the news gets to Ryu Hayabusa, he is an expert on fiends."

She had been standing by the dresser, admiring her reflection in the mirror. At the mention of Ryu, her eyes quickly shifted towards me. "You know Ryu Hayabusa?"

"Kind of, he's my uncle."

"Well I'll be damned; you've just earned Sonia's love."

"Now back to Christie and Helena…"

"Fine, during the third Dead or Alive tournament, my mother was chosen to lead the Ant-Douglass sect of Doatec."

"Guessing that's Helena's family."

"Yes, though at first, Helena really had nothing to do with Doatec. It was started by her father Fame Douglass who was notorious for having mistresses all over the world. Only two daughters and one son have stepped forth or found out to be his child: Helena, a woman named Kokoro, and Neil's foster father Jacques."

"Foster?" I yawned.

"When the company started going downhill in the financial department, they started stealing money from those foolish enough to invest. Unfortunately Neil's real father was one of those fools and was killed in a futile attempt to steal it back. I honestly don't know the details on how Jacques got involved."

"That's alright, I know enough."

"Well, Fame was killed by an assassin and Helena was forced to inherit the company by DOA's second tournament. Christie was secretly watching her to make sure she didn't learn too much about what was actually going on."

"So a long story short, Helena found out about all the corruptness and it was Christie's job to kill her?" I sighed in a bored voice.

"Exactly I'm afraid but obviously, my mother did not succeed…and because of that, I was chosen to kill her."

"Helena?"

"My mother."

"Ooh."

"Aren't you curious in why?"

"Sure, why?" It seemed the less interested I pretended to be, the more she told.

"Several other assassins had been chosen for the job, but failed miserably. So my original boss thought, hey, who would be better to kill Christie then her own daughter? What fun years those were…"

"I'm guessing that's when you two started bonding?"

She chuckled. "Quite a sense of humor you have, and here I thought ninja were a bunch of sticks in the mud."

"Um, I'm unfamiliar with that phrase."

"Basically, a serious person who doesn't know how to have any fun."

"Oh, and also, what does it mean if someone asks if the drapes match the curtains?"

April looked at me thoughtfully. "In what sense?"

"Neil said it to me earlier after making a comment about my purple hair and-"

She started laughing violently for two whole minutes straight. I was thoroughly perplexed, was it supposed to be that funny? I saw Neil poke his head through the door.

"What the heck is so funny?! People are trying to analyze data here!"

"Whatever," April managed to blurt out between chuckles, "Now get out of my room."

"Make me."

She quickly picked up a hair dryer from off the dresser and threatened to whack the platinum blonde on the side of the head. He quickly backed away.

"Fine, be that way." He pouted closing the door. April smiled.

"All too easy." She bragged before settling down in the cot below. Now the red head was out of sight and I surely hoped she hadn't a knife or dagger hidden down there. I still had questions regarding Christie and now this Helena woman. It sounded to me like they were enemies, something happened to turn them into allies (possibly Doatec's destruction?), and then they were friends. There was zero mention of my mother, who Christie implied she knew. _Hmmm, I wonder if Christie was kidnapped and forced into becoming a fiend or did she agree to it so she could finish the job of killing Helena?_ I've heard fishermen having stories about 'the one that got away' but never assassins. Ninja either, which is probably another reason why my Mom was so against Aunt Kasumi. She had wanted to kill her (Since aunt Kasumi ran away from her village, I concluded my mother was given the order to kill.) but failed every time. Then I come along reminding mother of her-

…

"Akane?" April's voice asked through the darkness. I felt my forehead and intense heat greeted my hand. Had I passed out in that short of time? Or worse, that strange green liquid…was it slowly poisoning me? "Akane!" April nearly screamed. I felt something poke me in the back but it wasn't sharp. Probably her foot.

"I'm fine; I just need to go to the restroom for a bit." I stuttered. Indeed, I was sick. When trying to climb down from the top bunk, I realized I was _very_ sick. As soon as I touched ground, I threw up. April switched on the lights and grimaced.

"Oh, bloody hell! Come with me."

We walked down the now darkened corridor of the jet but really couldn't take in my surroundings well. I was ready to pass out again at any given moment. Suddenly, I felt bare flesh against my forehead and April made a yelp sound. Apparently, she stopped in front of the entrance to the restroom and I hit my head on her back. I really hoped she was wearing something…I was too dizzy too tell.

"That's an awfully high fever you've got there."

"I'll be quick." I muttered entering. April closed the door gently and I splashed myself with water. _Come on, get a grip…you're a ninja damn it, act like one! _I straightened up my posture but immediately threw up. I collapsed on the floor as my eyes started watering up. _Master Shishio, where are you? I need you so badly right now…I'm so weak!!_ I quietly started sobbing to myself, believing it was best to just let it all out now where no one could see. I was surprised April didn't come in to make sure I wasn't scheming on how to kill them all. She must've presumed I was too sick to be a threat. Or, I'd prefer, had left to bring me some much needed medicine. I brought my knees up to my chin and hugged my legs against my chest. Subconsciously, my body began rocking itself back and forth. The queasiness in my stomach faded away and the world around me finally stood still. Whatever that was had finally passed. There was a gentle knock at the door.

"It's safe to come in, I'm feeling better." I answered softly. The door opened and I couldn't believe my eyes.

"Glad to here it. Are they keeping you prisoner here?"

I was too excited to speak…my thoughts had been correct.

"Akane?"

"Mas-Master Shisihio!"

He quickly placed his index finger against my lips to shush me. The mere touch of his skin against my lips sent a jolt of electricity through my body. _No, no, no!! What am I thinking? But I am in a dark room wearing only a t-shirt with a really hot guy-aaaahhhhhhhhh!! Shut-up!!_

"Did gather any background information on the people here? I counted six total onboard with several other jets not to far behind."

"Yes?" I said, unsure of what he just said. All I saw were his lips moving and nothing more. His hand moved up to my forehead.

"Still a bit delirious I see."

I blushed…lucky for me I still had a fever. Or maybe it was the fever…yes, it was all this damn fever's fault I'm suddenly feeling all these strange emotions for Master Shishio. He moved his face in closer to mine, our cheeks nearly touching.

"We'll talk later once you're feeling better." He whispered. "I'll be keeping a close eye on you till then Akane."

"Ok," I replied dreamily before he disappeared into the shadows. My skin around my right ear was still tingly from where Master Shishio's hot breath had touched. _Alright, he is safe…everything will be just fine now._ Once again, the bathroom door opened and this time, it was April who came in with a white tea cup in her hand.

"Drink this, it'll make you feel better." She said tilting my chin before bringing the rim of the cup to my mouth. I gratefully allowed the warm liquid to make its way down my throat. It felt so good…_but not as good as Master Shishio's touch…stop it!!_

"Had enough?" she asked. When I tried to answer, I clumsily dribbled some of the liquid back out. A small brown stain formed on my shirt. "Alright now, lets get you back to bed."

She hoisted me up with one arm and waited to see if I could walk on my own. _Oh, so she is dressed…barely. _A very low cut top wise, and super short down below black night gown was all that covered her body. We were halfway down the hallway when alarms began to go off. The entire area was bathed in a dull crimson red color.

"Now what!?" April growled pulling up her gown to retrieve a small dagger. My heart started to race, I hoped this wasn't Master Shishio's doing. _Of course not, he's too good a ninja to trip an alarm. _Neil ran over to us from a room just two feet away with a lap top held firmly in his hands. That tiny hearing device still frimly attched to his ear.

"We pissed off Doatec and now we get to enjoy what we've done." He informed bitterly.

"How many-," the jet shook violently for a few seconds, "- are attacking?"

"Over seventy."

"Damn."

"Yea, we're totally screwed. Three jets are already lost…if it weren't for the invisi-shield, we'd been toast a long time ago."

"Did you already take the data off that disk I gave you?"

"Its almost complete, I'm waiting for it now." He said petting the red laptop. Or at least it looked red but at the current moment, everything was red. "We have to abandon ship and hope for the best." The jet shook violently again.

"Cant we fight them?" I spoke up. "This is a fighter jet, isn't it?"

"Yea, but we can't afford to chance this data getting destroyed. It entails every last thing Doatec has done up to this point. Do you know how beneficial this will be to the cause and hell, why are we just standing here talking when we should be runnin! Let's get outta here!"

Again, worry washed over me as the duo grabbed each one of my arms and dragged me towards the hanger. _Master Shishio is still onboard somewhere…_ Neil released his grip on me and started typing in something on a keypad. The door opened but before we could step in, that entire half of the jet broke away into the ocean far down below. We all leapt back as a strong gust of wind whipped across our bodies. I heard several curse words being exchanged between the two.

"Sonia, we're unable to exit the jet. Proceed with extreme caution when confronting the enemy…precious data still onboard." Neil whispered into his headset.

"Understood, fleeing now." was her response. I carefully walked over to the door and held on tight. I saw over two dozen black jets firing millions of missiles in our direction. One white jet was overwhelmed and exploded in a large fireball as it descended to a watery grave. Was that to be our fate? I had an idea.

"I'm going to hijack one of the Doatec jets."

"Ninja chick say what!?" Neil yelled shaking his head. "There is no way your gonna-"

"I'll be back!" I waved before leaping out. The missiles were creating a perfect path for me to run along so I could get in close. Then I could easily teleport inside and kill the crew with whatever weapon they tried to kill me with. The explosive projectiles continued to be sputtered out at a mad man's pace as I gracefully from one to another. _Oh! If only my mother could see! _I must've missile-hopped at least fifty before getting within teleport range of an enemy jet. I jumped as high as my legs would allow and closed my eyes until my feet met hard steel. I re-opened them while rolling to the side. A stream of bullets tore at my shirt but other then that, I remained untouched. I ran along the ceiling while gathering the necessary amount of Ki to perform Art of wind blades. It was always useful when one had no weapons and several enemies. Seconds later, limbs littered the room. I picked up one of the few guns still in one piece and fired. Several shots rang out loudly. _Yuck…so noisy, I'll just use it like a Tonfa and pound them to death if need be. _The next three rooms I entered were exactly the same as the first, only the second room was full of those rocket launchers Master Shishio had been fond of. After wiping out the soldiers with wind blades, I traveled into the third room with it ready to kill. It only took four shots to clear the room. I sighed happily…none of these guys were respawning. Having used all that Ki energy had exhausted me; plus just recovering from a high fever hadn't helped either. The final room was the goal, the control room. Only four soldiers were in it and they spied my (currently out of ammo) rocket launcher fearfully.

"How'd the hell did you get in here!!" One of them screeched. I ran over to him and smartly smacked him upside the head with the first gun I had picked up and then shot him dead.

"That answer your question?" I snarled. The remaining three fell to their knees and rose up their arms in surrender. _Cowards…_I flipped behind them and with a quick but precise chop to the back of the neck and a couple of bullets, they were dead within seconds. I ran over to the dashboard (is that what it's called?) and took a look around. I quickly figured out which controls were useful. I backed the jet up behind its Doatec comrades and sent the missiles in their direction in a sweeping pattern from left to right. I took out about fifteen before three started shooting me. _Time to hijack another plane!_ I veered it into the closet jet of the three and broke its wing. _Awww crap, I can't steer! _It slammed into the second ship in a fiery crash. _Cool…on second thought. _This jet took quite a beating before it became unresponsive to me and started descending towards the sea. I, once again, ran along the missiles being shot at me ( you'd think they'd learn?) and teleported inside. To my surprise…this jet was already littered with dead Doatec soldiers.

"Akane, please report to the bridge. Shishio, over and out."

I smiled happily in knowing my idea was so brilliant that Master Shishio had followed suit. Didn't take me long to find him and I told him about how I rammed several jets into each other, destroying at least ten. For the next hour and a half, that's all we did. I took the jet on the left; Master Shishio would take the one on the right. Only about three out of six jets had respawning soldiers onboard. Those jets were rammed into another enemy jet and abandoned right away. Finally, Master Shishio and I infiltrated the final Doatec aircraft…or so we hoped. This one also had respawning soldiers but we threw them out into the ocean below. Master Shishio Sat back in the driver's seat and handed me a small radio that had been lying next to the steering wheel.

"Talk to them." He directed pressing a small red button.

"Hello?" I asked sheepishly.

"Akane? That you?" I heard Neil answer back.

"Yes, all enemies have been eliminated."

"Well damn! If that wasn't the most spectacular feat of destruction and mayhem I've- Holy Shhhhhhiiiiiiii-!!"

Seemingly from the heavens above, a giant bright yellow laser beam shot from the sky and hit the small white jet. I gasped as it exploded into a thousand pieces before our very eyes. _All that work…for nothing!!_

"Hello? Hello? Neil? Neil? Come in!?"

Master Shishio took the radio from my grasp and wrapped both arms around me in a tight embrace. "Hold your breath Akane." He whispered sadly and in seconds, we were underwater. I could no longer think straight…first I was thoroughly exhausted, second everybody was dead, and third, Master Shishio 'hugged' me. We swam a little ways before surfacing for air. All was quiet. I looked up to the sky to see the sun slowly lighting up the night sky. We just watched in a solemn silence at the beautiful sunrise…it was so peaceful now. There were no signs of the battle that had just taken place; Master Shishio must've made sure he teleported us far away.

"Now what do we do?" I sighed somberly. He gave me a small smile.

"Let's go look for some dry land."

I wrapped my arms around his neck as he began swimming.

_What a night, what a night… _


End file.
